#to go ahead and stay with the words. how she tends to not be honest. how she says she wouldnt come down to speak to him iirc but then story

[cent-scratchnsniff]

its scuffed as all hell but i NEEDED to have them hug

[cloudcountry]

SUMMARY: married life with eiland

COMMENTS: i've been thinking so hard about marrying this man i have two lawn chairs next to my mail box and a desk for him and a chest full of sweets for when we get married im planning ahead ahead i need him so bad

reader is compared to lady luck but they're not fem aligned.

It’s not uncommon for you to wake up in the morning to see Eiland curled up in bed, his reading glasses askew and a book opened over his face. You always remove the book gently, marking his page with a bookmark you keep handy on your nightstand and he thanks you profusely for it later. It’s not even that he stays up outrageously late, you just so happen to have a husband who is so dedicated to his research he can hardly put it down!

Although he would love nothing more than to have chocolate chip waffles with whipped cream and a hearty amount of syrup for breakfast, he is unfortunately bound by the knowledge that food like that has little nutrients and will not keep his precious spouse up and running throughout the day. Soft hands cut up fruits into hearts and stars, depositing them into one of your bowls with a proud smile as seasonal fruit pancakes sizzle on your stove. He takes pride in taking care of your needs. That is, after all, what a husband does! (Ignore the copious amount of times he messed up a dish...he's trying his best.)

Whenever he comes home after a meeting with his sister, he makes sure to ask your opinion on things. If it's something the two of you don’t agree on (much to his chagrin...yes, he pouts about it later) he will still report your honest opinion to Adeline. His sister can tell immediately if you agreed or disagreed with him based on his facial expression alone.

Eiland has a tendency to say things that can be taken in a flirtatious way, but are usually innocent. He still has not learned to watch his words with you even after years of marriage, calling you over to Louis’s stall to look at the beautiful wedding outfits and yapping about how lovely you would look in them. Oh Eiland, he has no idea what he’s implying!

Due to his hobbies, he is more of a help on the farm than some may think! You’re certainly going to have to walk him through ranching if he decides he wants to feed the animals, but he’ll pick up on how to plant seeds a lot faster. He’s quick work with a shovel and can figure out a hoe in no time flat! (He thinks you’re so cool and just wants to help out his lovely spouse, please let him.)

Without a doubt, you will get wrapped up in his Dungeons and Drama campaigns. He’ll be delighted if you make food based on the campaign and will brag for weeks about it. Be prepared to be referred to as the lovebirds when you come to the Inn on Friday’s! That’s simply how Mistria works I’m afraid.

Elsie is going to have the time of her life when the two of you get married. She’ll be on cloud nine, orbiting the two of you with well wishes and the most random gifts she insists you two need for your new life. It’s very sweet of her, even if you’re not entirely sure what you’d use a fondue pot for other than satisfying your husband’s raging appetite.

Daily trips to the Western Ruins and The Narrows are a must. Eiland likes to check in on the Museum, having been contributing to its upkeep for a long time now. If you find him starting a special set of armor tucked away in the back of the main area, don’t mind him. He’s just reminiscing on old times with you.

Eiland takes very good care of his skin and hair, and if you let him he’ll pamper you every morning and night. He tends to lose his sense of personal space when he does this though...his face will be very close to you. If you lean in to steal a kiss, he’ll jump and laugh, cheeks growing warm as you smile at him.

When he spaces out, he’ll reach out for your hand and start fiddling with your wedding ring. You’d think he’d fiddle with his own, but he likes feeling your knuckles under the pads of his fingers. Eiland will slowly come back down to Mistria at some point, his eyes focusing on his fingers against your skin and your soft smile shining upon him like Lady Luck herself. Truly, he got so lucky.

[honest-moth-of-silver-grove]

Hc for Halsin, Astarion, Will, Gortash, (& maybe Damon and Raphael) caring for a loved one with chronic illness or like an illness that keeps them bedbound for an extended time

A/N: Oh Nonnie, do I feel this ask lol. Chronic fatigue sucks, mainly because so few people don’t understand it goes beyond being just ‘tired’. There’s brain fog, stomach issues, and body pains– so I tried to touch on each of these symptom types for each character response. However you’re doing, whether you’re in a flare or not, I want you to know your illness is not your fault. You didn't ask for this. Don’t feel guilty for having to take care of yourself. You’re worth it. I promise. 

Also, this is unrelated but it’s lowkey funny that the week after I got diagnosed with a weird anemia, I write an answer for an ask about chronic fatigue. lol

TW: Mention of Chronic Fatigue/Pain, Brief Mentions of Sex 

🤕 BG3 Men Caring for a Gender Neutral! Loved One With Chronic Illness 🤕

Astarion: 

Worries. Like A LOT.

Tells you not to be so dramatic about it but will literally sprint towards you if he even hears you sigh.

He asks Karlach to carry you. 

Steals somebody’s cart/chariot if she refuses and instead makes her and Shadowheart take turns pulling that. (Jokes on him, they do it because they’re your friend, not his lol.) 

Has you come on missions because he feels more secure knowing you’re right behind him, and he can keep looking after you. Astarion makes sure to always sneak ahead so you never walk unknowingly into any danger 

Will give you massages if you’re in pain frequently, especially shoulder rubs, as he loves the view it gives him of your pretty neck. 

Speaking of necks, feeding is a huge no-no. At least, until you start feeling a bit better. And then he’ll only allow himself a taste. Gods knows you need all your strength, and he would feel terribly guilty to take what little you have from you. 

Lowkey appreciates the bags under your eyes and the way you can look like death incarnate, because well, then he doesn’t stand out as much. He also finds it strangely alluring, how you can look so fragile yet be so strong. It inspires him to find that balance within himself if he’s being honest. 

If you have trouble ‘performing’ due to your illness, he’s not upset at all! (He’s actually quite relieved.) 

Loves finding other ways you can be intimate together, like going to a spa and sharing a bath. Or finding a highly-rated inn and cuddling under some luxurious silk sheets. 

Turns out that after a lifetime of being forced to do things, Astarions is more than happy to spend his time doing nothing with you. 

Wyll: 

Is so sweet and tender when he speaks to you.

He’s literally Prince Charming, which makes you his Sleeping Beauty. 

On your good days, he’ll have you stand on his feet as he twirls you around, finding this the best way to ‘dance’ with you, given your current stamina. 

Requests for you to stay back at camp and rest while he and a few of the others handle the more taxing and dangerous missions. Gifts you some books and journals of his to keep you occupied in the meantime.

When he comes back to camp, the first thing he does is check on you. If you’re awake, he’ll make sure your needs are met before tending to his own. Doesn’t matter if Wyll’s starving and covered in guts, if you need a drink or an extra blanket, just say the word and he will fetch it immediately.  

Will recite poetry to you on the bad pain nights when you cannot sleep because everything aches too much. He knows his voice won’t stop the pain, but he hopes it provides a soothing atmosphere to just rest in, even if sleep cannot find you.

Is always so tender and gentle in his lovemaking, that it’s rarely an issue for you. However, on the nights that it is, don’t feel bad at all. Wyll adores you for much more than your body. He loves your mind, your heart, and your soul. Just being near you, knowing you love him back is more than enough. 

Halsin: 

Is always prepared with some medicinal herbs or a healing spell. 

He’s a natural caretaker, and you are no exception. However, when it comes to you, Halsin does approach the act a little bit differently. 

It’s much more personal when he makes you health potions or casts spells to heal you, you can see it in his eyes. In a way, it’s as if your pain has become his pain, and he needs the relief just as much as you. 

As long as you give your consent, Halsin prefers to have you touching him. Be it laying on top of his chest, or seated on his lap, he always wants his skin against yours, as if his touch alone could shield you from your illness. You find it rather sweet of him.

He pleads for you to stay behind in camp, or the grove- somewhere that is not the center of the action. He wishes for you to remain out of the fray, fearful that in your condition, fighters with less honor than he would take advantage of your vulnerability. 

If you need to be in a house with a room, and not camped out in the woods, he understands, although it may frustrate him a bit. He believes nature is the perfect healing environment, but he also trusts that you know your illness better than anyone. After all, you’ve managed it all these years. So instead, he simply brings nature to you. 

Haslin decorates your bedroom with plants, trees, and succulents. If you’re allergic, he enchants them to reduce their pollen production. 

Halsin understands he is rather large in the ‘down there’ department. If you cannot have traditional sex with him, it’s not a surprise to him. He knows more than one way to please his partner. He’s very giving and seems to get off on your pleasure more than his own at times. 

Halsin thinks you are one of the most beautiful gifts of nature. Your illness is just another part of you, and because it’s a part of you, he thinks it’s beautiful as well. You may resent it, but Halsin could never separate that part from you and hate it. He simply loves the whole of you too much to do that. 

Dammon:

Oh my god, he’s such a sweetheart.

But also a low-key tease. 

He has no issues getting or reaching things for you, but he does have a mischievous side, so be prepared for him to hold your things hostage, in exchange for a kiss or two. 

Has a habit of finding you curled up in bed on your worst pain/fatigue days and peppering you with kisses, and won’t stop until you laugh. 

Forges special mobility aids! Do you need help walking? Pfft. Not a problem. Dammon’s an incredible blacksmith, and he can make you armor that helps stabilize you. You know those really cool joint support braces you can get on Etsy and stuff? Yeah, he makes you DOZENS of them, all in different metals and designs, to match your mood/outfit for the day. 

While on the road, or in the grove, he always ensures you’re armed with some sort of easily gripped knife or sword, just in case anyone attacks. He does his best to keep you close, never walking too far ahead or behind, but you having that extra layer of protection makes him feel all the more reassured. 

He's not a fighter, but years of working in the forge have made his arms and back strong. He swears he will do everything he can to protect you, that no harm will come to you so long as you stay close. 

Is so relieved when you make it to the city at last. He’s so grateful that he can finally provide a real room and bed for you. He feels as if the entire journey has been worth it now that you’ll be able to rest and heal as you need, in the kind of safe and stable conditions you deserve.  

Comes in from a long, sweaty day of working in the forge, but immediately sets his sights on taking care of you. Draws a bath but insists you bathe first, as the water won’t be full of grime and ash after he bathes. 

Is always surprised and very flattered when you tug him in with you, still touched by your affection for him, as if you’ve just met for the first time. Dammon’s still a little shocked that out of everyone, you chose him. (Ironically, you feel the same. You’re a perfect match!) 

Insists on taking the lead during more intimate moments, and to make sure you just lay back and let him do all the work, introduces soft silk ties for your hands and ankles for whenever you feel like indulging in that kink with him. 

Gortash: 

Spoils you rotten. 

No, really.

Part of the highlight of being a Lord, soon-to-be Duke, is that he has the power to make all the other people do things for him. And no task is too costly or requires too much manpower so long as it means you’re taken care of. 

Buys the most lavish sheets and sleep sets for you. He wants you to be comfortable, the both of you deserve nothing but the best, after all. 

Assigns around-the-clock healers to you 24/7. They are always in your home, on-call, awaiting your request for relief. He wants every measure of treatment and remedy explored. If there’s a spell or herb that can reduce your pain, then you shall have it. 

Enjoys any downtime he has with you. Has his staff put a special chaise lounge in his office so you can visit him when he’s working. 

Gortash is so used to putting up fronts for everyone else, that it’s nice to let his guard down around you. You don’t judge him, or think less of him for his ambitions. Other people would run if they learned the truth, but not you. No, you’re so much more special than that. 

Of course, whenever you go out, you have your own guards and steel watch keeping you safe from anyone who’d wish to harm either you or him. All the other Lords and Ladies of Baldur’s Gate don’t dare say a mean word about you or your abilities, lest they wish to face the wrath of a peeved Gortash. 

As an inventor, Gortash invents the very first automatic, steampunk-esque wheelchair for you. It’s powered in the same way his Steel Watch is, and it is uniquely one-of-a-kind, tailor-made just for you. 

You know how in the game it’s hinted that Gortash basically stole and fucked his way into the high society of Baldur’s Gate? That many of the widowed Ladies gifted him lavish presents (like the deeds to their house?!) in response to whatever ‘relationship’ he had with them? Yeah. The man knows what he’s doing. And he does it well.

Your fitness level is no concern to him. The both of you will enjoy yourselves. He learns how to play the erogenous zones of your body perfectly, and in the event you’re too exhausted to play his, he has some, shall we say, special toys, he’s created just for himself. Course, should you ever ask, he’s more than willing to share them with you. ;)

Raphael: 

Switches between pampering you to badgering you about it.

When he’s feeling particularly generous, he makes a point to overindulge you, making sure you’re aware of how unselfish he’s being at the time. 

He’ll make sure you have not only whatever you need, but also, anything you should want. As a devil, he does have some magic up his sleeve, ready to take care of various aches and pains that you feel. 

Ensures no other beings in the House of Hope lay a finger on you. No, that’s a privilege for him and him alone. 

Of course, such benevolence from him comes at a price, so don’t expect the luxury to come freely, without strings attached. 

After he feels you’ve rested enough, he switches from being overly doting to being more curt, and even a bit cruel. 

You honestly don’t expect him to let you lounge all day, do you? Surely there’s a way you could make yourself useful to him. Your attention, your company, your body… there must be something of interest to him at the moment. Of course, Raphael won’t tell you outright what he wants, you have to figure it out for yourself each and every time. 

More than anything Raphael loves your adoration, your attention. Just sit with him in his office as he reads over the various contracts he has binding any number of sorry souls. Ask him questions, praise him. Tell him you think he’s brilliant… Darling just worship him. 

And after his ego’s been satisfied, he’ll go back to worshiping you. Relationships are all give and take after all. 

(And don’t worry if you’re too tired or in too much pain to perform well in bed. He’s certainly no good at it either lol.)

[danses-with-dogmeat]

Day 7 -- Kent Connolly

The (nsfw) details for Kinktober, Day 7 are just below the cut!

Minors, please don’t interact.

First Time with Kent Connolly x M!Reader

This one is... very long lol. But Kent is just !!! He's so precious, and I felt like I really wanted to draw out the process, since Kent tends to be quite shy and I feel like, in almost every capacity in a romantic relationship, he'd want to take things slowly.

So this is me trying to do that idea justice. If you're craving some serious sweetness with Kent, look no further! 😊

HOWEVER, I do have a couple TWs for allusions to/talk of sexual assault, and also mentions of homophobia. So please be aware of that!

Here is the link to the Kinktober 2023 Event List so you can stay up-to-date, or re-visit these works as you please.

Included: First Times, first time jitters, history of sexual assault, homophobic family, lack of acceptance, kissing, confessions of love, undressing, enthusiastic consent, praise, voice kink, light body worship, nipple play, hand jobs, anal fingering, gay sex, aftercare. Sweetness, love, adorableness, KENT AND READER BEING SO SWEET, cuteness, etc.

Words: so many lol 7.5k

--

“You did all this, Sole?” 

“Yeah, well… I figured, you know... this was something special." Your hand touched Kent's shoulder gently as he stared ahead in starry-eyed awe. "Plus, Claire owed me a favor, so… Honeymoon suite it is!”

You opened both arms wide in presentation of the romantic scene as you looked over to Kent with a large, dopey grin. 

Your partner was wide-eyed and frozen as he gazed into the mesmerizing room, his mouth still agape in awe at all you'd done for him.  

The candles, the flower pedals, the plush comforter on the bed, the way the curtains were drawn away from the windows, allowing cool, blue moonbeams to wade through the warm-toned candlelight within the room... It was a scene straight out of a romance novel.  

“It’s... Sole, goodness, it’s all too much for someone like me.”

You turned around to face him at that, a hurt expression creasing your brows as you spoke softly to your partner.

“Kent, sweetheart, you know that’s not true, could never be true. You deserve the world, you hear me?" Stepping forward, you wrapped both arms around the ghoul’s torso, hugging him tightly against you and placing a sweet kiss upon his temple. "And besides, you know how much of a romantic I am, right? I'll take any excuse to do something like this for my beloved hero.” 

You whispered that last bit into his ear, and as Kent turned to you, his eyes were glistening. 

God, he was sweet. Maybe the kindest, most darling man you’d ever met, and he was yours. 

Unable to help yourself, one hand left where it wrapped around Kent’s waist, and went to gently grasp at the point of his chin, holding him in place as you leaned in to kiss him full on the lips. You felt his little jolt, the small yelp of surprise he almost always released when you were this forward with your affections, and pulled back. 

Kent’s light, sparkling eyes were wide as he blinked up at you with parted lips. 

You let yourself take in the sight of him, then. His earnest expression, his genuine surprise, and his slow acceptance that you wanted this. To some, it might’ve become tiresome; the doubts Kent held in himself, the lack of forwardness, of confidence in your relationship, but after all the ghoul had been through, you could never blame him.

Plus… It was nice to take it slow. Necessary, even, after your own struggles, your losses, your difficulties being this vulnerable, this honest with someone about your true self. 

The army never glorified that kind of thing, and your family even less so. Your wife… she had understood, that though you were fond of her, though you loved Shaun with all your heart and held great affection for her, there was always something that was going to be off between the two of you, something that wasn’t the case– or wasn’t meant to be the case– with straight couples. 

But your family hadn’t been any the wiser about your strategically heterosexual marriage, and oh, how they’d adored Nora. And that was all that mattered, wasn’t it? 

At least, that's what they’d thought. 

Even on the hardest days of missing everyone you'd lost, you could never miss the way you couldn't be your true self with the people who were meant to accept you and love you unconditionally.

“Here, why don’t you get settled, I’ll close the door.” You forced yourself from your thoughts and gradually released Kent from your half-embrace as you turned to grab at the handle behind you, pulling the hotel room door closed with a click. 

Kent had seated himself on the end of the bed, not really appearing to be comfortable, but… he was trying. His hands still fidgeted in his lap, his eyes still darted around the room, but you saw him taking deep breaths, felt the nerves radiating off of him beginning, maybe, to dissipate just a little bit. 

“Want me to take your coat?” 

“O-oh, yes, thank you.” 

He pulled the thing off himself as though you were drilling him, like he was being timed, flailing around until he could hand you the stuffy, old suit jacket. 

“And your hat?” 

Kent handed that over swiftly as well, and you moved to hang it– and your own– on the coat rack by the door. 

“Nuka Cola?” You asked as you turned towards the little kitchenette in the lovely, roomy suite. 

As if I really have to ask. 

“Yes, t-that sounds nice.” 

He sounded so stiff, still, and a small part of you wished it was just another evening in his room; that instead of this lavish date night, you’d simply have shared the evening chatting about comics and a dozen other things in the quiet comfort of the Memory Den. Yet, you’d both talked about this so much recently, these next big steps in the relationship, moving forward after so long of holding things off, of taking the time you both needed to heal and get used to the idea of intimacy and vulnerability again, after your respective struggles. 

“Here, baby.” You handed him one cola bottle, and kept the other in hand as you sat down beside your partner on the lavish, burgundy comforter. 

“Wow,” You said with a chuckle, bouncing lightly on the cushy mattress. “This is... the nicest bed I’ve been on since waking up.” 

“Yeah,” he agreed with a rasp, “ahem, ah, comfy… yeah.” 

Kent swallowed like he had a radroach stuck in his throat, but took a swig of his drink nonetheless. 

You felt the energy in the air around you, the charged silence like volts of electricity flowing through your shared space, leaving you just as on-edge as your partner.

A deep breath left you, and you turned to him with a gentle determination.

“Kent, hon... we can just spend the night here, if you want.” You finally offered, breaking the silence. “The last thing I want is to pressure either of us, or to make you uncomfortable.” 

Kent's eyes met yours, and you saw apology shining there. 

“It’s okay." You insisted with a smile and a bump of your hand against his arm, "I promise, baby. If we’re not ready, we’re not. You know I’ve got no problem holding off. I’m… well, I’m definitely pretty nervous myself, to be honest.” 

“Y-you are?” Kent's bright blue eyes widened, his brow raising as though had no idea of your own struggles, your own inexperience. 

I swear, I told him… but maybe…

“Yeah.” You chuckled a little, your hands wringing around the glass neck of the bottle you held. “I actually had to ask Hancock for some tips.” 

“Oh.” Kent’s brow furrowed immediately, and he looked away from you. “Yeah… with ghouls I don’t know how different it tends to be–”

“No, Kent, that’s not what I meant, I… Did I really never tell you? In all the talks we’ve had about this?” 

“Tell me what?”

You swallowed, suddenly feeling the cruel claws of self-consciousness creep under your skin.

But he'd been honest with me. About everything.

You trusted Kent, with everything in you, you knew he'd never judge you, never breathe a word of something that you wanted to stay secret, but now... Well, Nora was the only one who'd ever really known the truth about you.

Maybe Hancock had an idea, given some of the questions you'd asked him in preparation for tonight, but you hadn't spilled your life story to him, he didn't know your background. You'd been vague with the details of why you needed some pointers, but this... This was as open as you could be.

A secret your closest family never even knew.

“That I’ve never… well, I've never been with another man before.” 

His gaze returned to yours with a whip of his head, brows still raised high, startling eyes wide with wonder. 

“N-no, Sole, I… I never knew.” Kent's head shook slowly back and forth. “And you want... your first time to be with–”

“Absolutely, Kent.” Your hand was on his before you even knew you’d moved, wrapping around it reassuringly as you scooted closer. “And you still want me to be your first?” You asked quietly, quite sure you knew the answer, but wanting to hear it anyway, wanting him to know you cared. 

Kent nodded to you with a small grin, before it quickly was dashed from him and his eyes grew strangely distant as they looked past you at some invisible memory.

“Well, you know… almost my first.” His voice was small, quiet as a breeze over snow-covered ground, and almost broke at the words. Your chest gave a painful ache that damn near knocked the breath from you at the sound of him, the sunken look upon your beloved partner's face. 

“Listen to me, love,” You scooted closer, until your thigh was brushing Kent’s, turning your body towards him and grasping at his hand all the harder, as reassuring a gesture as you could manage without overwhelming him. “What Sinjin’s goons did to you doesn’t count for shit, alright? That was… it was wrong and awful, it was cruel and it doesn’t count. You hear me?” 

He couldn’t quite speak, so Kent only nodded, and to your surprise, the ghoul actually leaned forward, falling into your chest as his arms wrapped around you. 

You felt a hollowness, a vile taste on your tongue as you recalled finding him in the aftermath that night, dressed as the Shroud and finishing off every last one of those criminal assholes before gently folding a shaking Kent into your comforting embrace.

If only you'd known before what they had done... You wouldn't have made their deaths so quick.

“We don’t have to do anything.” You leaned into your partner now, one hand moving behind him to rub soothing circles over the length of his back. 

“No.” 

You heard Kent croak out, and pulled yourself away slightly to look into his eyes. 

“You're sure?” 

He nodded; firmly, even, and you listened intently as Kent opened his mouth to speak. 

“I want to make new memories. With you, Sole. Ones that can replace the others… That can make me… happy, instead of… Well, you know.” 

You had to swallow as tears came unbidden to your eyes, feeling the way your throat tightened at the power of his words, of his resolve.

“That’s really brave, Kent.” 

“Yeah, well…” A small smile pulled at the ghoul’s lips, and you felt your heart soar at the sight. “You know me. Bravery. It’s what I’m all about.” 

A chuckle left you, and you leaned in to kiss his cheek. 

“Look, you may joke about it…” You whispered to him, “But really, I think it’s true, love. You’re brave as the Silver Shroud, there’s no doubt about it.” 

“Aw, stop it, Sole.” His hand weakly, jokingly, pushed at your chest as you both grinned. 

The air seemed a bit lighter now, some of the candles had burned down to nothing, and a cool breeze wafted through the slightly parted windows. A chill ran up your spine, but this time, instead of nerves, it was likely just the cold… or maybe the excitement you felt bubbling up. 

It’s decided. You reminded yourself. We’re actually doing this tonight. 

Instead of pulling away from him to start, you laid another kiss over Kent’s lips, and after a moment of stiffness, he leaned into it. You felt the brush of hot air as he exhaled through his ruined nose, but still, he only pushed further into you, tilting his head and kneading his phantom lips over yours. The friction had your mouth tingling, and the taste of your partner was sweet from the Fancy Lad’s cakes and Nuka Cola still on his tongue from after dinner. 

Finally, you pulled away, only for a brief moment, as you grabbed both the bottles of cola and leaned to set them down on the bedside table. 

“Hey,” You said as you scooted back on the bed, making it easier for you to lie down flat on the mattress. “Why don’t you take the lead? That way, if you start feeling uncomfortable, you can just take it back a notch. You can sort of set the pace, you know?” 

“You think that’ll work?” His voice was small, uncertain, even as his gaze set upon the way your body leaned back against the pillows at the head of the bed. As his gaze hinted at the yearning he felt within. 

“It’s up to you, love. Just thought it could be something to try?” 

Kent nodded then, and slowly, his body moved to join yours fully on the bed. Your breath almost caught in your throat as Kent crawled over top of you. He was still hesitant, yes, but his movements were more sure of themselves than you could’ve hoped. 

His arms caged you in from where he hovered above you, and his torso and hips pressed to yours as he gradually lowered his bodyweight onto you. 

“T-this okay?” 

“It's perfect, baby.” 

With that, a grin lit up Kent’s expression, and instilled the confidence he needed to press forward, to capture your lips in a kiss once again. 

His kisses were always as earnest as Kent himself was; careful, asking, sure, but more recently… brave. He kissed you with more confidence than you were used to, after being with him for so many months now, and this time, it took your breath away. Even then, as Kent felt you gasp into him, he didn’t pull away, only pushed forward.

A pleasant heat started radiating around you, invigorating your movements as you allowed your hands to raise off the mattress, to begin to roam over Kent’s body. Your fingers lightly grazed up his sides, and you felt him tense over you. In response, you slowed a bit, and only continued when you felt him release a breath and relax under your touch. 

It was a delightful dance you two weaved with one another, a push and pull, a giving and asking of consent that had you aching for more. If you could glean anything from his movements, it was that Kent too, was eager to feel you explore him. The way he ran his lips over yours in such charming movements-- there was an honest wanting behind them, but always of a respectful sort. In that moment, you realized, you truly couldn’t have asked for a better partner to share this with. 

“Kent.” You mumbled through your contact, and he pulled away only a hair’s breadth. 

“Hm?” 

“Do you mind…” Your fingers grazed over the bottom hem of his button up, “Can I take this off?” 

If his complexion had been different, you were sure you would’ve seen him blush at your request. Instead, he just looked away shyly, before nodding and sitting up to help. 

You joined him, bracing yourself against the pillows as you leaned forward and began to undo the buttons of his dress vest. When you had them undone, he shrugged the garment off, and looked down in wonder as your fingers set upon the smaller clasps on his shirt. Your smiling eyes met his, and Kent just looked… God, he had a way of– when he smiled at you– making you feel like you were the most important thing on this planet. 

You found yourself sincerely hoping your own look echoed that sentiment right back at him.

Once you had it undone, Kent helped you to pull the shirt from his shoulders as well; though, this time a bit more hesitantly, as he revealed his bare chest and torso to your gaze. You let your eyes rake leisurely down his body, from where you’d been looking in his eyes, now to his throat, the bobbing Adam’s apple as he gulped at the way you took him in, then down to his chest, how it rose and fell with his hurried breaths, his soft stomach, all rough and textured like you’d expected, but also, just…

He was breathtaking.

A man who’d lived so long, who’d been through as much as he had, and made it out still as sweet and loving as anyone you’d ever known-- hell, more so than anyone you'd known. He was everything good about humanity, wrapped up in this charming body, and offering himself to you, to be explored, to be loved, as he deserved; and dammit, you were going to live up to that, you were going to love him like everything good about the world was meant to be appreciated, respected, adored, and never taken for granted.

“Your turn?” Kent's voice interrupted your visual praise of him, and you nodded eagerly at the notion that he wanted to see you this way too. 

“Sorry, babe." You said with an easy smile, "Just got caught up in you. You’re just… You’re very handsome, Kent.” 

He tried to hold back the dopey, blushy grin threatening to take over his face, but you committed that look to memory before he could dash it away completely.

We'll have to work on that. How he could be sheepish about such a charming expression, I'll never know. I could see that look a hundred times a day and never grow tired of it.

Shakily, Kent set his fingers to your own set of buttons, the motion tickling slightly as he undid them as carefully as one might defuse a landmine. Your own hands worked at the cufflinks at the end of your sleeves, so when Kent was done, you could just pull the garment off straightaway. 

Once it was off, Kent must’ve gone through the same process you had only a few moments ago, his vibrant blue eyes taking you in without so much as a blink. The light scars upon your otherwise smooth skin from battles old and new, the crop of chest hairs below your collar bones, the way your stomach rose and fell from your own rapid breaths. 

Without a word, Kent’s hands found your chest, settling there reverently, his fingers stroking over your unmarred form, the coarse little hairs there, one hand even going down to brush gently over the point of your nipple, before his pressure eased you back, to lay down fully on the mattress. 

“I want…” Kent's roughened hands kept stroking over you, the light touches stimulating your nerves in an almost frustrating way. “I want to kiss you again.” 

“Please.” It left you on a desperate breath, and Kent pushed forwards eagerly. The warmth of your skin collided as he laid back over you, and his hands went up to wrap around your shoulders, even as your own touch set to drawing soothing patterns over the textured skin of his bare back. 

His lips, however, were only on yours for a moment, before Kent moved lower, setting them to the line of your jaw, then down to your neck, where you felt goosebumps spread from the tickling sensation of his feather-light kisses. 

“Ahh,” you sighed out, “That’s… that’s really nice, babe.” 

Kent hummed into you as he continued, and you blinked open your eyes to look down at him. His were still closed in a bliss of his own, as he worked over you with his worn lips, dragging them over your skin before pressing small crops of tingly kisses down your collarbone, and then onto your chest. 

As he moved lower, your hands slid up his body, now resting upon his shoulders, rubbing there with a bit of pressure until you felt his lips in a new place. He pulled away, surprising you, then, when his warm, wet lips set upon one erect little nipple, giving it a curious prod with his tongue. Immediately, your body tensed beneath him, your hands grasping firmly to his shoulders at the shock of his forward touch on that small, sensitive place. 

“Did that hurt?” Kent backed off quickly, his expression panicked as he looked down at you with furrowed brows. 

“N-no, it–” Your own chuckle interrupted you, “That actually feels really good, it just surprised me, is all.” 

“Oh, s-sorry.” 

“No!” You could tell you said the word too loudly, but honestly, if Kent got it into your head that you didn’t like that, well… it just wouldn’t be the truth, right? And heroes all strive towards the truth.

“No," You said more quietly this time, "Kent, please don’t apologize, I jerked up like that because it just felt so shockingly good. You're, god, I mean, you're a natural.” 

He made that face again, like he was trying to stifle a blush, and goodness, if that wasn’t one of the loveliest sights you’ve had the privilege to see. 

“You got a gift, baby, honestly.” 

“So... I should do it again?”

You licked your lips unwittingly as you nodded, silently wondering how sensitive he was in that same place upon his chest. You’d have to test it one day, but for now, you settled back to how you both were before.

Your stomach already buzzed in anticipation as Kent leaned forward, his eyes locked to your expression expectantly as he gave you a little teasing lick. Your own eyes closed in bliss, a chill running up your back from the too-light touch on your sensitive little bud, and a sigh left your lungs you as he did it again, drawing the action out a bit this time, much to your obvious delight. 

“Aw, yeah… that’s it.” You arched your back up against the mattress, pushing out your chest and urging your partner to continue. You let him witness the whole range of pleasure coursing through you, as your hands grasped his shoulders tightly, as you gasped with each lick, each sensual little suck, as your eyes rolled back in your head and you groaned out in response to your his touches. Just as you felt your nipple growing more sensitive, as it began to harden in response to the stimulation, Kent followed his instincts and switched to the other one. Thankfully though, he had the good sense to slide one hand up your body, to tease at the– now distinctly sensitive– bud he’d left temporarily unattended. 

Breaths continued to leave you in labored pants, and you could feel a tense bulge forming between your legs in response to his increasingly heated motions.

Kent appeared to be enjoying himself as well, it seemed, as you felt the evidence of his excitement against one of your thighs. As he laid sprawled over you, likely unwittingly, Kent began to grind his hips in slow, undulating movements against you. 

“Geeze, babe, that feels nice.” You continued to praise him, feeling your voice grow huskier with building arousal. “C-can I ask you something else?” You added at the last minute, your heart already beginning to pound against your chest at the thought of what you were about to request. 

“Hm?” Kent looked up at you, his eyes foggy as he blinked away the haze of his own increasing pleasure. “O-of course.” 

“I want us to do this, Kent.” You tried to regulate your voice, to keep it from wavering, to keep your eyes on him, even as you felt your cheeks flush with heat. 

“M-me too, Sole.” He whispered back with a little smile. 

Your heart fluttered in your chest as your own grin took over your expression. 

“Alright, so, I was thinking… Maybe we could, um, take off...”

“This next?” 

Kent leaned back even more, then, and one hand laid to rest lightly over the button of your dress pants. 

You nodded rapidly, feeling that bulge between your legs tingle with anticipation.

“Y-yeah, exactly. If you’re ready.” You quickly added. 

Though his brows were creased, though you could see a small shadow of nervousness clouding his vision for just a brief moment, next, his gaze was back on you, and with a nod, Kent's fingers brushed over the swell of your building erection.

“I was a little, ah, nervous when I felt it, but… Like you said. Gotta be brave. If the Shroud gave up every time he felt a little nervous, well, he wouldn’t be a hero now, right?” 

Your smile could only broaden at his sound reasoning. 

“I guess not," You agreed, "but, still… Kent, I don’t want to pressure you–” 

He cut you off, surprising you with his brash forwardness as his lips quickly captured yours.

You had no choice but to melt into it, rejoicing in the firmness of the contact, the way you could feel his rapid pulse through his skin, and still taste honeyed bliss on his tongue as it shyly darted out to meet yours.

Again, you found yourself in utter awe at his admirable courage.  

“You’re not," He said as he pulled away, "Don’t worry, my love.”

With that, Kent leaned back again, settling his knees on either side of your thighs as his fingers brushed over your button and zipper. “I really want this too, you know. Even if I'm nervous... doesn't mean I want it any less.” 

Your heart jumped, and as his eyes set upon your face again, you gave him one last nod of assurance, and felt pressure release as your button popped open. 

Your partner worked slowly, as had become custom with you two, much to both your liking, and pulled down the zip, before he began to shimmy both your briefs and pants down at once. You lifted your ass off the mattress to allow him to slide them down, and then it went easy, until at last, Kent was tugging the pant legs off from around your ankles. 

You were too busy staring at his precious expression as he took you in fully, for the first time, to notice what it was exactly he had his gaze set on. Without realizing it, you’d grown more than a bit stiff within the fabric walls of your briefs. Your cock stood up against your lower stomach, at full hardness, as Kent blinked down at you. 

“Wow…” He breathed, and you could feel your blush rising at his unabashed scrutiny. “I, no, you… I really made you like this?” 

Another nod, another blush, and another instance where Kent was in awe of you. And goodness, how that overwhelming feeling was wholly mutual. 

“Kent, baby…” 

At that, he snapped out of his haze, blinking as his gaze met yours.

“Right.” Kent cleared his throat, and scooted towards you with intent, and then… stopped, at a loss. “W-what should I do next?” 

“Well, what do you want to do?” 

His brows furrowed cutely, an expression akin to a pout resting on his face as he considered your question.

“T-touch you?” He suddenly asked.

Very well. Your expression plainly told him, and with a shy smile, you reached out, easing his hands into yours as you guided them to where your erection strained up against your belly. 

Slowly, his fingers wrapped around you with a tentative firmness, one that satisfied, but still left you aching for more. He drew his hands up, with your guidance, and smoothed down the generous bead of slick pre-cum from your slit over the rest of your shaft, easing the friction of his touch over you. A breathy groan escaped from your parted lips, and you felt Kent’s pace quicken, his confidence building at your reactions to his efforts. 

“Is this okay?” His raspy voice still questioned, even as he continued his dizzying movements. If you hadn’t known any better, you would’ve thought his words were meant to tease-- that your innocent, sweet little Kent Connolly was being smug.

But you knew better.

“More than okay." You assured him as the words left you almost in a groan. "Mm, feels really good, baby.” 

Kent's grip tightened a bit, and your hips bucked up into his textured touch in response, but instead of pulling away like he had with your chest, your partner's pace only grew more insistent against you. 

A shuddering breath left your lungs, some form of a ‘yeah,’ following shortly after as you felt your cock twitch within his grasp.

“H-hold on, please.” You held up one hand as you panted, as you felt sweat slickening over your back and forehead, as that tightening knot down below threatened to come undone all too soon. 

Kent's hands paused their movement, but stayed upon you as your gazes met. 

“Something wrong?”

“No, god no, the opposite.” You chuckled, but Kent only blinked at you.

“Getting too close, that’s all. Want this to last longer. I want… Want to touch you.” 

A moment of consideration, and then Kent’s hands left your protesting cock. 

“Okay.” He said with a new certainty, shifting back to give you room to sit up. 

With that, you rose, and set your hands upon his body gently, encouraging your partner to lie down in your place on the mattress, before you returned his earlier favor, and tentatively removed his trousers and the underwear beneath. 

Silver Shroud boxer-briefs… You noted with a fond smile, Who could’ve guessed?

You made no comment to him though, continuing with your efforts without pause. You allowed the clothes to pile up on the floor, and took in the full sight of your partner spread out beneath you. 

Much like Kent earlier in the evening, you just couldn’t help yourself.

Soon, your lips found him-- his lips-- briefly in a sweet, chaste kiss, then to his neck, drawing a shining line of spit over his collar bone with your wet lips, down to his chest, mouthing and leaving teasing, light lovebites in your wake as you steadily moved lower down his body. 

A fresh bout of breathy sighs and whines left your partner at your actions, and shudders of pleasure ran up and down through your nerves at the way he sounded from your attentions, the way he blissfully moaned out your name, how his voice caressed the hotel-room air as though he were whispering it for everyone in the world to hear. To hear and to know that you loved him, and that he loved this, despite all odds.

Because it was with you. 

You couldn’t help but warm fondly at the thought, and at the realization that you felt the same such way. 

As your lips set upon his lower stomach, grazing lightly over his pubic bone, you felt the heat of Kent's own rising erection building so near to your face. The next instant, and one hand was upon him lightly, gentle, asking touches that had him nodding wildly in approval above you, until you took his textured girth in-hand, and began to leisurely stroke. He was already mostly hard, already leaking like you were, and, also like you, Kent was pleading for you to ease up only moments after you’d began your ministrations. 

“So, ah…” You both had to stop and take a couple of breaths, allowing your mind to clear somewhat before you voiced your inquiry. “You want to try for the main event?” 

Inwardly, you cringed at your wording, making it sound like some show or sporting contest, when really… this was something softer, unostentatious, just… honest. Even with the romance that bled into it, the theatre of the candles and flower pedals and the honeymoon suite... the act itself was more subdued than any act upon a stage, or any great concert in an arena, it was just another soft chapter of your love story. It was words on a page: tangible, but only just so, only by the hands that caress it, by the eyes that so thoughtfully take it in.

“I-I do…” Kent said, his words hushed, but tinged with excitement.

You could see though, that he wanted to say something more, and with a swallow, he did.

“So, you want to, um… be on top?” 

You blinked in surprise at his forwardness, but still, you were grateful for it. Not only did it open up the conversation, as you had planned on doing yourself, but it showed that he was actively participating in this. He was choosing to be with you, and of course, of course that was necessary to continue in any capacity, but so far in your relationship, you’d lead the way. Kent was more tentative, less confident, less experienced, but when he made an effort to participate so enthusiastically, it just… it put your mind and heart at ease. He told you time and time again, ‘I want this.’ but words and actions are different, and after all he’d been through… you needed all he could give to determine how enthusiastic-- how ready-- he truly was. 

“That’s… well,” You started, “That’s all I’ve ever done, um, so far, you know, with Nora... Um, so I wouldn’t mind it, but… Where would you be most comfortable?” 

“Why don’t you take the lead this time?” Kent offered with a shaky voice, and stayed put where he was lying back on the bed, giving you your answer in more ways than one. 

With a nod, you slid off the mattress, and though Kent was surely surprised as you left him briefly, any inquiries of his were answered a moment later, when you settled yourself at the foot of the bed with a bottle of lube clasped in one hand. 

Hancock’s ‘most important tip,’ as he had put it. 

"Don't be shy with this stuff, trust me, heh."

He'd winked then too, but the genuine insistence was there in his words, and you weren't about to ignore them.

“It might be a little cold,” You warned as you squirted a generous amount into the palm of one hand, “but lemme just…”

You rubbed both hands together, trying to warm the gel up a bit, before lowering them between your partner’s legs. With a swallow of his nerves, Kent spread them wider for you, and with his invitation extended, you began to touch him. 

He gasped at first, but even so, you felt his body making efforts to relax as your hands grazed over his most intimate places. Slowly, you allowed your fingers to ease downward from his erection, down the seam of his ass until you reached his hole, tentatively spreading the slick of the lube there as you tried to pleasure him all at once. You felt Kent clench just a tad, before the pressure eased, and you heard a deep breath leave him. 

“This okay?” You questioned, keeping your gaze locked to his expression as your hands moved. 

“Y-yeah, Sole. Just… slow.”

“Slow.” You repeated, your own breath becoming shaky as you felt your arousal pooling low in your stomach. Unwittingly, you found one of your slickened hands pulling away and going to your own cock, stroking and spreading the lube over your length as your other hand continued familiarizing Kent with your intimate touch. 

One finger prodded gently at his asshole, and the faintest of moans left him at the near-intrusion. 

“You like that?” Your expression soon became a bit smug, proud of the way your touch obviously excited him. 

Kent didn’t answer, not with words, anyway, but as you did it again, his hardened member gave an excited little jerk of its own, and another– lovely– involuntary sound spilled from his parted lips. 

Your partner relaxed further back into the mattress as you continued toying with him, until, with relative ease, you found your prodding index finger sinking into him. The movement was accompanied by a throaty groan, but you honestly weren’t sure if the noise had come from you or him. 

Both, perhaps. Your thoughts suggested, and you felt your cheeks heat at that.

Kent tightened momentarily around the new sensation as you probed a bit further, and you allowed time for him to adjust while your other hand worked over your pulsing cock.

Once he’d relaxed enough for the pressure to let up, you began to withdraw, before pushing back in once more. It was slow, steady, just like the rest of the blissful night had been.

Eventually, one finger turned to two, and you thrust them unhurriedly, lovingly so; kneading and curling your fingers against his pliant walls, and pulling a menagerie of unusually wanton noises from your coy, intimately sheepish other half. 

“God, I love the sounds you’re making for me, love.” You leaned your body over his slightly, letting your skin brush his as you continued working your fingers in and out of him, your half-lidded gaze set religiously on the way his brows creased together, how the muscles in his throat strained, his chest rose and fell with the rhythm of your movements. 

“... Can I–?” 

You tried to begin your inquiry, but Kent’s half-moan, half-plead stopped you in your tracks. 

“Yes,” He whined out, “Yes, Sole, I-I'm ready for you.” 

The words had you quivering, had your eyes fogging over in bliss, your cock nudging up into your hand as if to encourage you to move forward.

Who were you to deny it? To deny him?

You scooted even closer to your partner, as you withdrew your fingers from him, and placed your free hand over one hip, holding Kent in place beneath you as the other guided the tip of your cock to rest at his entrance. 

“Please.” Kent looked like a dream as he eagerly shimmied his hips into you, his own cock drooling a strand of translucent pre-cum onto his soft stomach as you fought to hold yourself back. All of this, his pleading for you, the sight of him spread out beneath your body, the feel of his warmth, the smell of sex and spiced candles in the air, it had you straining and leaking all the same as your partner was.

But you had to be gentle, had to be slow. With that thought in mind, you nudged the head of your cock against him, and gradually, pressed your hips forward. You were pleased by the way he relented to you so easily, the feel of him damn-near making tears form in your eyes at the way his heat encased your sensitive tip, clenching and thrusting towards you, demanding more.  

“Good?” Your voice strained out the word.

Kent nodded frantically, one hand going to grasp at your wrist where you were holding onto his hips, and giving you an encouraging squeeze. 

With that, you allowed yourself to push steadily in further, feeling the delicious drag of his walls over you, the pleasant ease of the slick lubricant only making your movements more fluid, more blissful. 

Twin gasps left your lips as you finally bottomed out inside him, and you felt Kent’s grasp over your wrist tighten almost to the point of pain as his breath picked up in his chest. 

“Geeze, Sole…” He rasped as he blinked up at you, sky-blue eyes hazy like fog over the ocean as they clouded over with pleasure. 

“You feel so good.” You moaned out, and felt his body shudder at the sound of your praise. It was all you needed to begin pulling yourself out, only a couple inches, before easing your length back inside. Kent’s free hand tugged at the fabric of the comforter as your pace picked up, his teeth set together as his jaw clenched; you hoped, from the overwhelming pleasure, and not discomfort. 

“Feel so good around me… Doing so well, baby.” You encouraged as your breath picked up with the steadily increasing pace of your thrusts. “You doing okay?” 

“Mmhm. Ah-huh.” A whine escaped his throat, but the way it left him at the same moment his cock spilled another bead of pre-cum over his skin allowed you to make a pretty sound determination. 

“You like this, love?” 

Another thrust, this one a tad more aggressive than any before it, and you heard the skin of your hips meet his ass with a resounding clap. 

“Y-yeah, I do.” The sound of his raised voice went straight to your throbbing member, growing all the harder within him at the strain you detected there, but also the sheer honesty. His want for this, for you inside him, for you to be engaging in this scary, intimate act together that was more worth it than you ever could’ve imagined.

This is what intimacy means. Two people unselfishly and unabashedly loving one another, supporting one another, yearning for one another. You accepting him, and him, you. Love, free of judgement, completely honest, completely overwhelming in its sincerity.

You yearned to see Kent like this a thousand more times, to feel him surrounding you, his body and yours singing praises to each other while your minds and hearts embraced in the same such way. 

“Kent, ah…” A more drawn-out moan forced itself from your throat, and he clenched at the way you whined his name.

“Babe, I-I love you.” You managed, and your partner gasped, his eyes bursting open at the sound of your precious words. 

“You… you mean that?” His hand on you tightened its grip.

“Always, baby.” You said so quickly you nearly cut him off, “I love everything about you, and I… I love you for trusting me this way.” 

You leaned over him now, and felt Kent adjust himself to allow you to lay comfortably over top him. Your chests brushed together, shared breaths mingling in the small space that separated your faces. You were as close to him as one could be to another, and still, you craved more. 

“I love you too, Sole. More than I ever thought I c-could love someone.” 

His whispered words drew your lips to his, and held you there, reveling in the feel of his touch, his taste, the sweet massage of his textured lips against yours. 

Your thrusts into him had eased as you spoke, but now, they picked back up, the force of them jolting your bodies and the large mattress below until you heard the springs straining under your combined weight. 

A gasp left Kent each time your cock hilted inside him, and soon enough, you were forced to separate from the kiss, as you both quickly became winded. 

“I-I’m getting close.” You managed as you felt your blood rushing, your stomach tightening, fire flowing through your veins. 

“I am too.” Kent almost sounded surprised, like that fact had snuck up on him, and you grinned as you focused the grinding of your hips more strategically, flexing and unflexing your stomach muscles where his leaking erection was trapped between your bodies. 

His gasps turned to moans, Kent’s hips bucking upwards to meet you, to increase the friction over his aching cock, before his breath hitched in his chest, and he released.

A searing warmth blossomed between your bodies as he met his blissful end beneath you. Your eyes stayed locked to his expression as he rode out his pleasure, fixating on the way his jaw dropped, his eyes closed tightly, his little phantom nose wrinkled as he tensed and writhed and bucked up into you like his life depended on your closeness for its survival. 

His expression, the way he clenched around you, his warmth, his spend dripping onto your skin, it was too much, and you followed right after him.

Kent’s legs wrapped around you, holding your body firmly in place as you shouted out your own release, spilling deep inside him. He came down from his high just as you were riding yours out, groaning at the feel of you finishing so deep within, the continuing pressure of your cock against his sore walls, the oversensitivity of your stomach grinding against his tired cock proving almost too much, until finally, you stilled over top him. 

Both of you merely existed for a moment, panting out your exertion while you stayed pressed together snugly and basked in the pleasant afterglow of your first union together.

With a protesting sort of grunt though, you began to ease yourself up and out of your partner. You’d laid a towel over the headrest of the bed in preparation, and grabbed it now with one shaky hand, bringing it between your bodies to swipe away the mess of lube and spend. Kent was nearly asleep, his eyes half-closed as he watched you clean him with a tired little grin upon his lips. 

Unable to resist the call of that sweet, endearing expression, you bent down to press a kiss to his smiling mouth, before collapsing on the comforter beside him. 

“That was…” You started, shaking your head as you tried to finish the sentence, but there… there weren't the words to describe the bliss you’d just felt. 

“It was better than the Silver Shroud.” Kent whispered, almost chuckling to himself, even as your eyebrows flew high up on your forehead at his confession. 

There was certainly humor there, but also genuine surprise as you sat up to look at him-- to question both the soundness of that statement and his state of mind.

“It was?!”

A chuckle and a nod were your answer, his precious blue eyes crinkling with mirth at your animated response.

"Wow... that's saying a lot, baby. You sure you're okay?"

With that, Kent scooted his body closer to yours, warming your heart as his arms wrapped about you without a measly ounce of hesitation.

"Honestly?" His sleepy voice rasped, "I don't think there's a time I've ever been better."

[livsoulsecrets]

I might just be in love - AylinLuna fic (23.5)

Summary:

What happens after EP4 ends and Luna follows Aylin after they leave the Astronomy Club?

-

Aylin mostly ignored Luna as she walked to the school’s cafeteria, appearing to tune out as Luna talked about their club’s success. Luna didn’t mind it too much, as she had grown used to Aylin’s quietness over the last few days.

Luna actually appreciated how Aylin didn’t feel the urge to fill any silence with empty words. She spoke when she had something to say, not when you wanted her to. It was the type of resolve Luna couldn’t help but admire.

“And I can’t wait to shove this into Ton’s face tomorrow!” She bragged, speeding up her pace to catch up with Aylin. “He really thought I couldn’t compete with his-”

“Why are you here, human senior?” Aylin interrupted. She stopped walking so abruptly Luna barely avoided colliding into her.

“Because we are going to get water,” Luna replied, narrowing her eyes.

“I was going to get water,” Aylin corrected her, staring ahead instead of facing Luna. “You just started following me around. Why?”

“I wasn’t following you!” She protested, crossing her arms. Aylin turned to her and tilted her head in a silent protest. “Fine, I was following you, but not in a weird way. I just wanted to keep you company.”

“And who says I want any company?”

That stunned Luna into silence. As Aylin’s blank expression stared back at her, she tried to come up with an answer.

In the end, she settled for asking, “Well, what do you want to do, then?”

Aylin furrowed her brow in confusion, and Luna truly didn’t understand what was so surprising about her question.

“I don’t think anyone ever asked me that before,” Aylin mumbled, her hands twisting the ends of her hat.

Speechless, Luna observed the movements of her fingers against the fabric, unsure of what to say to that.

For some reason, she kept stumbling into Aylin’s moments of vulnerability. The rooftop where she finally got Aylin to hear her out, her breakdown in the school court when she accepted Luna as a friend, or even now, when she confessed something so heartbreaking with such nonchalance.

“They should have,” Luna managed to say.

Aylin was honest in the way only someone who was free could be. Luna had admired that about her since the day they met, but she only now realized freedom had made her lonely too.

“I want to not talk to any other human being for the rest of the day,” Aylin replied. “I want to finish getting the club in order and stay in my room all night so I can finally rest.”

Luna nodded immediately, guilt overtaking her. She had imposed herself on Aylin because she had missed the girl after a day spent apart, focusing on tending to the other students, so much so that she hadn’t even bothered to think about what Aylin needed.

“Okay, we can do that. I’ll help clean up the club so you can be home soon. I’ll shut up and stop bothering you, I swear!”

Luna zipped her mouth, stepping back already to give Luna some room.

She was about to apologize when Aylin cut her off anxiously. “You don’t have to leave.”

Luna narrowed her eyes at her and echoed Aylin’s own words, “I thought you didn’t want to talk to any humans anymore.”

“I don’t.” Aylin nervously bounced on the balls of her feet, avoiding Luna’s eyes. “But I don’t mind you talking. You don’t expect me to answer, so it doesn’t bother me.”

Luna watched Aylin in awe. Her heart did something weird inside her chest, swirling around as if it were clearing space for this new feeling of joy she had never experienced before.

She grinned. “Alright, then. I guess I won’t shut up, after all.”

Aylin sighed, “You never do, human senior.”

She turned on her heels and continued walking, but not before Luna caught sight of the weirdest expression on her face.

Aylin was smiling.

Not the broad, shinny grin Luna flashed everyone when she announced the Astronomy Club’s return, or the charming smirk she threw around when she needed a favor.

No, Aylin’s smile was shy and discreet, almost imperceptible. A lot like her.

She knew people called her Alien because she was singular and easily spotted, but just as easily ignored.

Not to Luna, though. If Luna was the moon, then Aylin was a shooting star. Something you needed to watch closely, or you’d miss it. A passing chance at a wish that could turn things around.

Luna watched, and she wished.

Keep smiling at me like that, she hoped, and at no one else.

“Are you coming?” Aylin’s voice called out, surpassing the whirlwind of realizations inside Luna’s heart.

“Yes, I am!” She hurried to reply. What she didn’t say was that there weren’t a lot of places Aylin could go to that Luna wouldn’t follow — it was far too son for that.

Aylin waited for her to catch up before buying them both water, and she remained quiet as Luna chatted for the both of them all the way back to the Astronomy Club.

[xelasrecords]

Go, Go, Stay

Harry Choi x Reader

A peek into Harry's mind, his denial of his feelings, and his belief that love is fiction, as seen from his perspective. Day 35 spoilers.

Words: 1.7k

Masterlist Read on AO3

Would it be too selfish if Harry wanted you to stay despite? Despite turning you down, despite setting a firm line between you, despite not wanting anything more with you. A word constantly repeated would lose its meaning, its syllables deteriorated into a foreign jumble of sounds. No matter how many times Harry repeated it in his head, the most logical conclusion remained: you were unique and he wanted more time with you without being pressured by the future.

There was a time when Harry was just drifting. He made films just because he could, he played the piano because he had the talent to, he swam and ran for the sake of moving, and he ate in bed because he saw no use for a dining table. There was nothing to hate and nothing to like.

Was it a life worth living? Harry never bothered to ponder the question, but if he were asked whether his routine brought any meaning to him, he was sure he wouldn't be able to give out an absolute answer.

When you barged into his life, he didn't think much of it. It was a disruption to his ennui, but what did he care? He just had to talk more, take more pictures, and set aside more time for another person. It was almost effortless, so he didn't mind the invasion of his habit.

It was almost effortless that he instinctively knew that it was different.

You were different, for who could ever trespass on his personal life without aggravating him? You were the shining, brilliant ray that sliced through his lifelong daze. Everything you did should have been a violation of his principles, but he never viewed you as a weapon. He looked forward to talking to you every day, and that was that. End of speculation.

If you were gone the whole day, Harry would have the urge to blurt out, Don't go too far. Talk to me. Can't you see how invested I am in you? Why are you still here? No, don't answer that. I don't want to know, and would be taken aback by the intensity of it.

But perhaps it was for the best that he never spoke it out loud; God forbid if he labelled you and him as anything romantic. You were just two people conversing with each other every day. Hearing your voice made him want to get out of bed, but that wasn't romantic. Harry would rather get lost in the woods forever than labelling himself as a man of romantic notions.

If he had to be honest, it hurt him to see you hurting because of his words. Sometimes he would be too callous without thinking, and he could see that he had gone too far. It wasn't a conscious sharp pang that staked through his heart, but the words did taste bitter on his tongue, and he would spend the rest of the day wondering if he had acted in some vile way that had sent you running from him, never to come back.

How many times could he push you before you finally left? How long was he allowed to stay in this grace period?

Of course, Harry would always end his internal discourse with, Who cares if she leaves? My life will remain the same. Nothing has changed. Nothing has to change.

But then one day, you spilled your most vulnerable feelings to him. You showed him how strong they were, and how sure you were in him when he couldn't even be sure of his own desire. Harry couldn't help but feel like it was retribution for his effort to change. He was just adjusting to this new routine with you, he was just getting used to having a constant in his life without being forced to plan ahead, and now you wanted to upend everything he knew? Couldn't you go with the flow as he did? Avoided your feelings and pretended they didn't exist?

Why did you have to change?

He wanted you to be more like him, but he wasn't even comfortable with himself. Such was the pain of being in denial.

If Harry were braver in speaking the truth—not the kind he tended to use as an excuse to be rude, but the kind that would make him seem more humane—he would have asked you to go slower. Wait for him. He was new in this and he was a creature of habit, so please don't push him too fast. He couldn't handle extreme changes. He wanted you, but he couldn't. He just couldn't. Please understand.

When Harry realised there was a real possibility that you would leave after his onslaught of abrasive rejection, he was horrified. In the process of trying to avoid ending a relationship by refusing to get into one, he had unknowingly, possibly irreversibly, ruin the very relationship he was trying to save. Harry's ex had once told him that his careless indifference would someday find its way back to hurt him. He was starting to see what she meant.

Harry wanted to be selfish. You were someone he shared his stories with. You knew about his romantic history and didn't doubt him when he tried to convince you there was nothing romantic going on. It was strange enough that he was afraid you might misunderstand, but he quickly shut down the thought. He just did it so you wouldn't annoy him with unnecessary questions. Yes, that must be it.

You were not the problem. You listened when no one else cared to. People always dragged him around like a ragged doll, but you waited for him to come to you. Harry was tired of people scrambling his life and putting it back the way they saw fit, so imagine his relief when he realised that you were nothing like them.

You were patient and walked by his side. He too kept you close, averse to the idea of people finding out about you. Not because Harry had ill intentions to alienate you from the world, but because he wanted his connection with you to remain untouchable, a secret exclusive to you and him.

You were easy to love; it was Harry who found it hard to let himself love someone, anyone. In his experience, loving meant dating meant severed relationships meant losing something he couldn't bear to lose. Why must he love anyone if they would leave him in the end? If losing someone was inevitable, then it would be better if he never got attached to them in the first place. He had operated under the belief of keep nothing, lose nothing for so long that he had forgotten how to hold close the things dear to him. His house, bare of furniture and items that might suggest the owner's personality, was the evidence.

But look at him now. Look at the mess he made. Now, Harry was sure you wouldn't talk to him again. The teasing, calming voice he longed to hear every night before falling into deep slumber would be no more. He wanted to reach for you, but there was something that held him back. Asking you to come back meant he had to be vulnerable, and it was the last thing he needed to do in a moment of weakness.

How could he protect himself if he had to bare his heart?

It wasn't you that Harry feared. Or perhaps it was you, seeing that you were the only person who had the power to make him tremble and question everything he knew about love. But he couldn't let you see how he felt, not when he was too terrified to peer into his own emotions. He wasn't even aware that they existed until he met you.

But the more Harry pushed to get you out of his mind, the more you haunted him. The act of noticing and then deliberately ignoring was heinous and counterintuitive. How could he pretend something wasn't bothersome when it kept scratching for his attention? How could he ignore someone who had already caught his attention? How could he toss you out after he knew you as if you were just another nuisance?

You were not, you were not, you were not.

After rejecting you, Harry felt like he could never reach you again. You would put up your guards against him, and he wouldn't fault you for it. Harry knew very well how good protection was for a heart—it wasn't as if he hadn't just done exactly that. But beyond that, he was afraid of losing you forever. It was a fear that outweighed his extreme avoidance of anything remotely close to romance.

Harry had to get back to you. Although he couldn't yet face the possibility of something more, he still wanted you to stay in his life. He wanted to be included in your daily routine. Your interests interested him, your quirks intrigued him, and the most important thing of all, you were not boring. You always came around with fresh ideas that made him wonder why it had taken him this long to meet someone like you.

With you, Harry found a new purpose to live. No longer was he drifting aimlessly, now he wished to be aware of his every waking second and savour every moment with you. He didn't want to live in the world where he had known you and had to go on as if he never had. That wouldn't be living. That would be the cruellest torture he had to withstand forevermore.

Harry then made a promise to himself that he would talk to you more often and be more open about his concerns regarding you. He would scoff less at your outrageous remarks that he chuckled at when no one was around. He would ask you point blank about how you were doing, not out of courtesy, but because he cared.

How many times had he run from his problems? How often had he tried to escape from intrusive people? Harry didn't want to run anymore. He had to fix this relationship before it was too late, before you saw him as an irredeemable monster and his fear became a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Love might not be real, but you were, and you were worth staying for.

-

Footnotes:

My guiding thought throughout writing this was humanise not antagonise. What Harry said was hurtful, but he wasn't a villain.

Another one is cut down metaphors. God forbid he says anything flowery (a huge loss for me sigh).

I didn't dive into his childhood because, by this stage of revelation, I don't think he could dig to the root of his avoidance to love yet. Becoming aware of your attachment style takes time, and someone like Harry would need more time than one reflection after rejecting someone he refuses to admit he likes.

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[invinciblerodent]

Does Iona embrace or reject the tadpole and it’s powers?

Ah, thank you for asking! ❤️ I'm about to lose my mind over this! ❤️

(Please excuse the disproportionately long rant ahead lol, I'll take any and every opportunity to ramble on about my favorite girl and Faerun's Most Unnecessarily Complicated Weasel-Woman.)

The TL;DR short answer is kinda... neither??? Like ultimately, she rejected them, as was her intent from the beginning, but during the game, she was kind of in this limbo of neither accepting nor rejecting them for as long as possible.

Mechanically, she didn't use them (the tadpole powers, the illithid wisdom, nothing except for a couple very specific occasions- more on that later), but she also didn't quite tell the Emperor that he can take a long breath off a short staff until very, very late act 3.

Her game, it was very much one of duplicity and double-crossing. Iona, she's a very cautious woman, very cunning, and tends to be very mistrustful too: bluffing on instinct and keeping her cards so close to her chest that even she forgets what they were is a habit she had picked up through decades of lies and deceit, towards even those she considered her intimates. She likely wouldn't have trusted the Guardian even if it hadn't taken a face that resembles that of her ex-husband, but like this, save for some covert emotional turmoil on her part (thanks for that Emps), she just did not buy even a single word coming from his mouth.

(cont. under cut)

Her hiding herself behind a smiling face of a wall thick as it is tall, it... doesn't really jive well with a willingness to link minds with people I think, so she didn't make use of most of the in-game opportunities to do that.... lest the companions realize how much of what she had told them early on was just what they wanted to hear.

But, that kind of cunning and self-preservation instinct also kinda means that she doesn't like to explicitly cut off a potential escape route either, not until she knows for sure that it's a no-go: so she sort of strung the Emperor along, playing at being held back from "embracing her potential" by a typical, garden-variety fear (instead of the innate, living magic within her ringing constantly in her head at the very presence of the tadpole like a huge, screeching smoke alarm) for as long as possible.

She toyed with the Emperor's willingness to accept that she's kind and weak and stupid (as many powerful people are willing to accept that about almost anyone), all the while she had no true intention of using the tadpole, trusting him, or of staying his ally once he ceased to be useful. But, until the very last moment, she played at a very cordial, friendly-or-even-more partnership with him- though lying to the entity literally inside her mind was not easy, this woman has deception expertise and uncanny good luck rolling for a reason lol.

I haven't hammered out the details of the precise timeline of act 3, but so far, she's been hoarding tadpoles in a small chest in camp, and I think that after the House of Hope (and the Emperor's very obvious manipulations, that no, she can trust him, she can totally trust him, honest, he's not even mad that she went to get the hammer, he's just disappointed that she doesn't trust him, sad squid face), she's going to steal away with it sometime during the night, and quietly destroy both the regular-, and the Astral-Touched tadpoles.

The Emperor is of course going to be furious (unsure yet if quietly, or VERY, VERY LOUDLY in a way that triggers a party-wide conversation once she gets back), and the jig is going to be up for sure. There will need to be a discussion (with either just Emps or everyone) that stretches all of Iona's persuasive muscles, but by that time, we'll be close enough to the endgame that neither she, nor the Emperor will have a choice but to continue relying on one another in this strained, mistrustful sort of capacity.

As for

~~The specific times she willingly used tadpole-powers~~,

(which is kind of a separate thing but indulge me please)

there are only like... four very specific instances I consider to be voluntary uses of it: three "canon" ones, and one headcanon.

Once in act 1, she used it to exert her will over the gnoll leader as sort of an experiment in cruelty, before they would have met the Guardian (it worked, and it kind of planted this seed in her mind that maybe this is something to keep in her back pocket, and not reject right away- she met Emps-as-Herric the next day, and that sent her for a spin)

Twice in act 2:

once to reassure Wyll in front of Mizora without words, and this kind of softer use of the tadpole at Wyll's initiation was a very uncomfortably vulnerable moment for her: she participated willingly, but cut it as short as possible, and was later even annoyed with Wyll for a while for traipsing into her mind without her permission. (He could tell she wasn't happy with him, but he was polite enough to act like he couldn't- the DDR [Dance Dance Rejection] i think happened the next night.)

and another time in Ketheric's throne room, to kill the goblins (suffocation) as to not arouse suspicion in Z'rell. This was another experiment in cruelty, that, at this point, sort of strained a few relationships. (Specifically with Karlach, who is her best friend on her run, and I like to think that they got into a pretty bad fight over this.)

And finally, the one headcanon instance in act 3, when, the morning after the graveyard scene with Astarion (after having chased each other through the empty streets, shoved each other into doorways for happy kisses, and finally shoved-dragged each other up onto the roof of the Elfsong to get some actual privacy).

Lying there together, she was struck by this incredible frustration with herself over not being able to find the words or the will to say them, and instead, she asked (or, more like, very urgently told) him to link minds with her, so she could show him exactly how she sees him, and (implicitly) also how she feels, in lieu of a verbal confession to match his own.

I mean, in my mind it's a kind of.... strange unity achieved through fulfilled love that, in my head, was foreshadowed by a lot of frustrations she has already felt with herself over not being able to get past herself, and let herself be known.

Overcoming herself, and linking with him wholly and willingly, it's almost -at the lack of a more fitting word- a mutual "penetration" of the very self: her boundary (of not being able to share herself) is pierced by them overcoming his boundary (of not being able to see himself, in both the physical and metaphysical sense).

For a moment that feels both fleeting and infinite, they're both holding, and inhabiting one another; and there, at the crack of the dawn after his metaphorical rebirth -smiling, satisfied, free, and bathed gloriously in the pink light of the rising sun that makes him look almost truly alive, with his own words ("I love you, I love this, I want it all") intertwined with her wordless love pulsing through their shared mind like a heartbeat- she can finally show him, and him alone, all that she is, and all that he means to her.

............... one of these things is not like the others i guess, lol.

........................................ so i guess, yeah, TL;DR2, she doesn't embrace them, or schnarf up any more than the one she already has, but, she IS willing to use the tadpole for casual cruelty, and/or soul-shattering moments of mutual recognition of one in the other, yeah.

...................................................................and also maybe sexy purposes.

It's probably not the most excellent idea in the world lore-wise, but it makes for such an excellent callback to the "You want to be known; to be tasted" line from Astarion's first romance scene????

I mean, the Themes????? and the Parallels??????? When that line is spoken, they don't KNOW each other at all, and are still stringing one another along with lies and deceit, but he FORESHADOWS the NOW when they DO know each other, more than anyone, to the degree that they're willing to share ALL THE DEEPEST, UGLIEST PARTS OF THEMSELVES and know that they're ACCEPTED IN THE OTHER, and they're FINDING COMFORT IN THAT MUTUAL KNOWLEDGE OF THE SELF, and in SHARING SENSATIONS AND EMOTIONS INFINITELY REFLECTED OFF ONE ANOTHER LIKE LIGHT TRAPPED IN A PRISM, come the FUCK ON, MAN

it like fucking writes itself

[foxymacchiato]

“ A Not-so-Pleasant Reunion ”

Fandom: Attack on Titan

Summary: After deciding to stay and continue onward with her training, Cadet Taylor Schuyler catches up with old friends she met in her youth: the three children from Shinganshina. Taylor wishes to catch up with what they have been up to in the last two years that she had last seen them, but as expected running into Eren Yeager wasn’t an enjoyable experience when he talks down about her choice of career.

Word Count: 5,402

Characters: Tay Schuyler {OC}, Mel Oglethorpe {OC}, Sam Dossam {OC}, Nathanael Schuyler {OC}, Reiner Braun, Mikasa Ackerman, Eren Yeager

Warnings: Major changes in canon, rewrite of scene from anime, mild spoilers, heavily implied OC x Canon

Divider cred: thecutestgrotto

Author's note: Repost and second-part to this fic! This story was also a rewrite of the third episode of Attack on Titan in S1.~

Poor potato girl was still running through the training field as the sun was beginning to set as part of her punishment. It was quite a shock having to witness not only this girl deciding now of all times was an appropriate time to start eating, but to offer Shadis a smaller half than the one she had with a straight face. Shadis was left speechless before he had completely chewed her out with his colorful vocabulary.

Nathanael followed Sam after grabbing some stew and bread, and mug of water. At least the water looked much fresher than the one from the pump he was used to in Windsor Village. As he walked to find a place to sit, he looked around for any sign of his little sister to see if she had decided to stay after all. His eyes had briefly met Mel’s before she went back to eating her food.

“Rough first day?”

Mel looked up from her mug at the big blond guy who decided to sit across from her.

“Not really. Why do you ask?” 

“You seemed tense. Thought maybe the commandant got to you.”

Mel shook her head. “I’m not worried about him. Besides, he’ll learn fast. I tend to have a bit of a mouth on me.”

He chuckled. “Hey, at least you’re honest.” 

Mel couldn’t help but smile. This guy seemed to have some charm to him, despite the scary look he seemed to have on his face. 

“I haven’t properly introduced myself. My name is Reiner Braun.”

“Melody.”

“I didn’t forget. It’s a nice name.”

Mel felt her cheeks heat up. As she took a glimpse at him, she noticed that he had beautiful golden eyes.

Sam took notice of Mel speaking to Braun. He thought he saw Mel’s cheeks a soft shade of pink when he had spoken to her. As he ate his stew, he looked at Sam, then at Mel, and back at his friend.

“Something on your mind, buddy?” Nathanael asked.

Sam looked over at him. “What do you mean?”

“Come on, I saw that look. You know, Mel is going to be talking to other guys unless you tell her how yo—” He was suddenly cut off by Sam shoving his bread loaf into his mouth, making him gag. Nathanael took the load out after taking a bite, and waved it at him. “You’re not getting this back,” he said, his mouth still full.

“Go ahead, I don’t want your diseases,” Sam grumbled. “I don’t know what it is, there’s something about that guy that doesn’t sit right with me. I mean, look at him.”

Nathanael looked over at Reiner, who seemed to be interested in whatever it was Mel was talking to him about. He seemed intimidating, but he seemed to soften up compared to the first time he saw him.

“Are you saying that because you’re jealous or because he’s a tough guy?”

Sam’s face turned as red as a fresh tomato as he stirred his spoon in his stew.

“I’ve been saying it for years and I will tell you again.” Nathanael leaned closer towards his friend. “Tell her the truth! ”

“It’s not that easy,” Sam muttered. “I care about Melody, I don’t want to risk losing her.”

“Well, you will if you don’t say something.” Nathanael knew Sam had a huge crush on Mel since the day he met her. He looked around at the familiar faces that he would come to eat and sleep with for the next three years. For a brief moment, his eyes landed on a beautiful blonde girl who had her hair tied back into a bun, whom he had heard was from Sina and seemed to have experience in the medical field. Seeing her up close, Nathanael thought his heart skipped a beat. Her hazel eyes turned to his direction, and he quickly turned his flustered face away, his attention caught on the crowd beginning to form at one of the tables.

To his surprise, in the crowd he had spotted the mousy-brown-haired girl clutching her leather sketchbook tight in her heart that belonged to his little sister. 

“I’ll be damned. She didn’t give up after all.” Strangely, he was glad to see that Taylor didn’t give up after all, yet in the back of his mind he was still uncertain if she could make it far. She was standing behind a couple of other people who were circling around the table with expressions of shock, horror, and awe.

"What's going on over there?" Nathanael asked.

"It’s that kid from Shinganshina. A lot of people have questions about what happened that day when the titan attack happened," Sam answered.

“Oh.” Nathanael fell quiet. The idea of the titans tearing down the one thing that managed to keep them safe for over a hundred years made him suddenly lose his appetite. When the news reached his hometown, he lost sleep for weeks afraid that the titans would break through and devour his family.

Nathanael tried to tune out the questions, but his curiosity peaked. Even Sam found himself listening in to hear about what that kid had to experience.

“Didn’t Taylor and your mother go to Shinganshina?” Sam asked.

“Yeah,” Nathanael murmured, setting his food aside. “A doctor said there was someone who could help him when he got really sick. Mom mentioned she became friends with a couple kids when they were there.”  Nathanael glanced over, listening to some of the questions. He wondered if that person they were talking to was probably one of the children Taylor had met in her time in Shinganshina.

“Yeah, okay? I saw the big guy,” Eren said as though he had told the story many times.

Everyone gasped.

“Whoa, seriously?” asked the blonde guy with sideburns.

“Okay, exactly how tall was he?!” asked Samuel.

“He stuck his head over the outer wall,” Eren replied.

“Whoa, wait! I thought he stepped over the wall completely!”

“So did I!” exclaimed the redhead girl with the short ponytail.

“That was the rumor in my village too!”

“Nah,” Eren said, unphased. “He was big, but not that big.”

“So what did it look like?” Tay asked, clutching her sketchbook close to her chest.

He looked over towards her. “It had a mouth like a corpse, and no skin, just muscles.”

“And the armored titan,” asked another guy, “the one that broke through Wall Maria?!”

Eren looked over after eating some of his stew. “Is that what they’re calling it? In all the panic, it was just another titan to me.”

“No way,” Samuel exclaimed. “So what were they like?”

Eren immediately froze up. His spoon fell into his stew, and he covered his mouth as though he was going to be sick. Everyone immediately went silent when they saw his reaction, each looking concerned for him and some feeling bad for asking too many questions and thus reminding him of everything he had lost.

“Come on,” said Marco Bodt, the friendly guy with freckles, “that’s enough questions, all right? I’m sure he’d rather not relive everything he went through.”

“Sorry,” said Connie. “We didn’t mean to—”

“It’s not like that.” Eren’s demeanor changed as he took a bite out of his loaf; he acted more confident in himself, and perhaps a little cocky as he spoke. “Those stupid titans, they’re really not that big a deal. If we focus on mastering the omni-directional mobility gear they gave us, then it’s titan payback time.”

As he went on to talk about how he has waited years to train to become a soldier, Tay couldn’t help but smile as she listened to Eren ramble on about how he would butcher the titans and drown them all out. It was nice to see he had not changed one bit, she thought to herself. At the other table, Mel couldn’t help but roll her eyes at Eren's big talk; she sympathized with the fact that he had to endure such a frightening attack, yet here he was trying to act big and tough and to her, he just sounded ridiculous. Reiner was quiet most of Eren’s talk, but his eyes caught a glimpse of Mel shaking her head. He couldn’t help but chuckle at Mel having no interest in hearing some small kid try to act so tough. As soon as Eren revealed he was joining the Scout Regiment, Nathanael perked up, looking through the crowd to see exactly what his sister was thinking just as Jean decided to add his own input.

Nathanael felt uneasy at the thought of Tay reconsidering the Scout Regiment despite the promise they had made. He was so naive as a child to believe they stood a chance to go beyond the walls. The thought of even doing so now made him shudder. He had dreams of killing any titan he had faced alongside his father and uncle, two of the greatest soldiers the Scout Regiment ever had in his eyes. As young children, Nathanael was able to lift Tay’s spirits with made up stories about them becoming scouts and defeating the titans together. That used to be his dream up until they had lost their father. Since then, Nathanael realized the real dangers the Scout Regiment had to offer, and so he and Taylor made a promise they wouldn’t even dare to think of joining the Scout Regiment. But now that this guy was here, he worried his sister may end up having second thoughts.

Nathanael came back down to reality when he heard someone standing up, and saw that Eren Yeager kid was staring daggers at Jean, who had decided to add in his own input about the Scout Regiment.

“Are you trying to pick a fight?” he muttered.

“Stop it, you guys,” Marco said, hoping this wouldn’t turn into a physical altercation.

But Jean smirked, and stood up. “All right, sure. Makes no difference to me.”

Everyone turned their attention to them as the two stood face to face. Taylor took a few steps away from them just in case fists did start flying, and Nathanael began to inch up so he could be ready to snatch his sister away from them should this turn violent.

The sound of a bell ringing was heard overhead, alerting them they were to return to their cabins. At that moment, several cadets who shared no interest in watching these two knuckleheads bicker began to take their trays and make their way out of the mess hall. 

The tall dark-haired guy looked over at Reiner, noticing he wasn’t getting up from his seat, then his head turned to the redhead he was sitting across. A look of concern fell upon his face, but he just made his way towards the door.

 Jean sighed. “Hey, I apologize,” he said to Eren. “Sorry for calling you names and dismissing your choice of career.” He extended his hand out to Eren. “Put ‘er there, kid, what do you say?”

Eren didn’t smile. He didn’t appreciate the way Jean was talking down to him and was standing here trying to act all buddy-buddy in front of everyone. This guy was going to be a thorn in his side, Eren could tell right away.

“Right,” Eren said, uninterested. “Yeah, I’m sorry as well.” Instead of shaking his hand, Eren smacked Jean’s hand away, and turned to make his way out the door.

“Well that was very anticlimactic,” Mel commented, eating the last of her bread. She sighed and stood up.

Sam sighed, relieved he didn’t have to witness a fight. He grabbed his tray. “Come on, guys, let’s get going. Tomorrow is gonna be a long day.”

“Can’t wait.” Mel got up from her seat, stretching her arms out. 

“Hey, wait.” Reiner stood up. When Mel turned to face him, he felt his chest tighten. The first thing he took notice of was how beautiful her eyes were, reminding him of how the moonlight reflected in a body of water. “You need someone to walk you to your cabin?”

Mel turned her head, her eyebrow raised as she placed her hand on her hip. “I don’t know. It’s a long, merciless journey,” she said as she twirled her red hair. “You think you can handle it?”

Reiner smiled, liking this girl’s wit. “We’ll just have to see.”

Mel smirked, and he followed her.

Tay watched as Eren made his way out. She herself had several questions to ask him about what happened that day and since then, but from that previous reaction he had earlier, she didn’t want to overwhelm him and cause him to spiral. She was just glad to see that he wasn’t so sickly skinny as he was that night she caught him stealing bread from their shop. 

Nathaneal approached her, glaring at Yeager until he was finally gone. He turned his attention back to his sister. “Well, I'm glad to see you decided to stay after all.”

“Hm?” Tay came back down to earth after she was lost in thought, then it had already registered what Nathanael had said. “Oh, yeah.” It was a tough choice, but I didn't want to give up so quickly on my first day.”

“Well I'm proud of you for making that call, Tay.”

His tone said otherwise, Taylor thought.

“You know there’s no shame in doing so if it gets too much,” Nathanael assured her. “That’s entirely up to you.”

“Nathanael.” Taylor turned her head towards him. “I’m okay. Really.”

Nathanael nodded. “I know. Besides, it’d be boring without you around.”

“Oh, I know.”

Nathanael looked at his kid sister as they both made their way out. As they went outside, they spotted Jean standing there, who for some reason had the most dead eyes he had had all night, just wiped his hand along Connie’s back as he was desperately trying to reach behind him to get off whatever was on his shirt.

"What'd you wipe on me?!" Connie asked, annoyed.

"Don't worry...just my trust," replied Jean sullenly.

Nathanael and Taylor looked confused at the two boys, unsurely what had even prompted Jean to even say that.

"Uhhhh…let's just go over here." Nathanael gently pulled Tay's arm and fast-walked away from them.

As the two of them walked the field, they took in the sights of the cabins and the training ground they would be working hard in. 

“Well, at least it won't be boring with the crew finally together.” Nathanael stretched out his arms, trying to crack his knuckles. “It’ll be just like we always talked about when we were kids, huh? Only this time, we’ll be living the high life: Mom can open a much better bakery, the twins will have tons of food in their bellies, and we get to be with our uncle just like old times. Isn’t that exciting?”

“Uh-huh.” 

Nathanael noticed Tay had no interest in the Military Police like he did. Ever since he made that announcement, she had decided on a whim she would come alongside him.

“You know, you telling Shadis off like that was awesome,” Nathanael told her. “And what Shadis said doesn’t mean shit. I think you could do it.”

Taylor didn’t look at her brother. She knew he was only saying that to make her feel better, but he didn’t mean it. She was the smallest one in the group and the one who needed the most protection out of all of them. Deep down, she hated being seen as the weakingly and being treated as though she was so fragile.

Nathanael cleared his throat when Tay didn’t respond. “Oh, here’s something funny. Mel’s already got herself a boyfriend. Poor Sammy, I can tell the guy is jealous. I tell him every day ‘You gotta tell Mel your real feelings, otherwise someone else will come sweep her off her feet.’ Shame.” He shook his head.

Tay was half paying attention as she watched Eren and Mikasa pass by. Mikasa was holding a bit of her black hair; from the looks of it, she was trying to decide what length to cut it. Nathanael stopped walking when he realized Tay wasn't listening, and saw her looking over at them.

“Is that them?” Nathanael asked.

“Yes, it is,” she murmured. “Apparently, he lost his mother when the titans started coming in. He doesn’t have a clue where his father is, it’s like he just vanished. They've been on their own since then.”

“Damn.” Nathanael couldn't imagine how scary it must have been for kids like them so young to survive on their own. Still, a little voice in the back of his mind was setting off alarms that something about the kid with the scowl on his face, he didn't like it.

“Just be careful with people like them, Taylor.”

Tay furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, and glanced at her brother. “What do you mean by that?” she asked.

Nathanael crossed his arms. “There’s something about that guy—”

“Eren,” Tay cut him off, “that's his name.”

Nathanael shook his head. “There's something about Eren I don't trust.”

“Why, because of him talking about killing those things?”

“It's more so the way he said it.” Nathanael tensed up, trying to not remember the pain that he and his family had to endure when they lost their father to those monsters. “Taylor, don't forget we made a promise,” he said,

“I didn't forget, Nat. Besides, me catching up with an old friend isn't going to make me want to join the scouts. I already gave up on that a long time ago.”

“Good. But if I were you, I would stay away from someone like him.”

“You don't know him like I do.”

“You only knew him for a few months. What's so special about that?”

Tay thought back of that rainy night when she encountered Eren once again. Nathanael nor their mother knew of that night when she let him steal some food. She sighed. “He lost a lot that day, Nathanael. You don’t have to like him, but have a little sympathy.”

Nathanael sighed. “Okay. I’ll go easy. The most I’ll do is stay out of his way.”

“As long as you play nice with the other boys, by all means.” Tay perked her shoulders and made her way down the field. Nathanael made a face at her as she walked off, and as he followed her to catch up with her he did an exaggerated slip with his arms waving.

As they reached the girls’ cabin, Taylor approached the steps, and looked up at the night sky. The shades of purple and blue would look beautiful on a canvas, she thought.

“Okay, so you’re sure you’ll be okay for tomorrow?” Nathanael asked her.

“I will be.” Taylor sat down on the steps, opening her sketchbook and taking out her charcoal pencil.

“Good, good.” Nathanael nodded as he leaned against the staircase. “You know there’s no shame in going home if it gets too much.”

Tay stopped drawing. “Nathanael,” she muttered, “ you promised.”

“I know, I know, sorry.” He raised his hand. “It’s a force of habit. I don’t doubt you can do it, I only say that because I don’t want you to get your hopes up if things don’t work out.”

“Then I’m just gonna work hard and prove to Shadis that I can do it and that I’m not the weakingly everyone thinks I am.” Taylor began scribbling in her sketchbook. 

Nathanael looked at whatever it was she was drawing, noticing she was making it take the shape of a circle before shaping it into a head.

“Well, whatever ends up happening, just know I’ll be proud of you, Tay, just as you make sure to give them hell.”

“Oh, trust me, I will.”

Nathanael smiled, happy to see her give her smile at him. “Are you staying up?”

“I’m just waiting for Mel to get back.”

“Okay. Just get plenty of rest. It's gonna be a tough day tomorrow.”

“Oh, don’t I know it. It’ll be the start of the first three years of hell.”

“Damn right. Well, goodnight, kiddo.”

“Goodnight.”

Nathanael waved at his sister. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, not paying attention as he had bumped into a small blonde kid who was walking by and seemed to be staring off in the clouds, and he ended up stumbling back and falling. 

“Sorry! I wasn’t watching where I was going,” said the shaken blonde guy.

Nathanael, who was still standing, waved his hands and shook his head. “No, no! That was my fault, I kinda zoned out there.” He held his hand out towards him and helped the blonde kid back on his feet. “Sorry about that,” he said, patting his arm.

“Ah, it’s no problem. I’m fine.”

“You’re…Arlert, right?”

“Yes. Armin. Schuyler?”

“Nathanael.” He smiled. “Well nice to meet you directly instead of getting screamed at by the commandant.”

“Tell me about it.”

Back at the girls’ cabin, Tay found herself sketching what Eren had described the titan to look like when he spoke of it in the mess hall. “It had a mouth like a corpse, and no skin, just muscle.” Taylor had never seen a corpse up close before. She never even got a chance to see her father’s dead body since there was nothing to bring back on that final mission, aside from his cloak that was stained with red at the bottom half.

“Hey, move over.”

“Huh?” Taylor looked up, meeting the brown-eyed glare of the freckled-girl. who was carrying Potato Girl on her back. Potato Girl was just sleeping on her back, just snoring loudly with drool rolling down the side of her cheek. The petite blonde girl was trailing behind, carrying an empty shack that had water.

“Sorry.” Taylor scooted over.

Freckles didn’t say anything as she walked by. Taylor glared at her.

“Bitch,” she grumbled, hoping Freckles didn’t hear her. She did, but she didn’t pay her any mind.

“S-sorry about her, she’s just tired,” Blondie said.

“She could ask a little nicer,” Tay grumbled, going back to her scribbling. She realized she sounded harsh to the small blonde girl, and she felt a bit bad. “Sorry. It’s been a long day, and I don’t want to deal with anyone's attitude.”

“I understand.” Blondie smiled softly. “What’re you drawing?”

“I don’t know yet. I just kinda scribble until it turns into something.” She showed her the base of the head she was doing

“Wow, you have quite a talent,” she said, sweetly. “My name is Krista. You’re…Tabitha, right?”

“Taylor,” she said, chuckling.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” Krista exclaimed. “Trying to remember names all night, everyone just blurs together.”

“It’s okay! I know it’s going to be a nightmare trying to remember everyone here.”

“Well I already know that we’re going to become great friends.” 

Tay smiled, surprised to see that tiny blonde girl in a place like this. Perhaps she had the same goal as she did. Then she noticed Mel approaching with the blonde brute. Taylor closed her book and stood up, feeling a bit intimidated by that big guy. His face had scared her the first time she saw him, and she was afraid he would probably be mean.

“Well, this is our stop,” Reiner said.

“Thanks for walking me to my cabin,” Mel said, smirking. 

“Anytime. You ever need an escort, I’ll be there.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“So I’ll see you tomorrow for the altitude test?” 

“I’ll be there.”

“Great! I’ll see you tomor—” Reiner walked backwards, bumping into a couple of barrels behind him. Reiner managed to turn around fast and stop it from falling over, making Mel and Tay giggle as he held it for a minute. “Stay!” he said when he removed his hands. He looked back at the girls with a nervous smile. “I, uh, I’m…I’m gonna go.” He pointed behind him and began to make his way to his cabin.

Mel shook her head, laughing at that big dork. He was not what she thought he would be, and something about him made her heart warm.

“Oooooh, you got a new boyfriend?” Taylor asked, leaning on the rail with her hands on her cheeks.

“Hah!” Mel said. “That’s rich coming from you when you were blushing at Yeager’s story!”

Tay’s eyes widened and her cheeks turned red. “What?!” she said. “Are you saying what I think you are?”

“I don’t know, you tell me.” Mel confidently walked up the steps.

Tay shook her head. “He’s just a kid I met years ago. There is no way I feel anything like that for him.”

“Mm-hmm.” Mel could read her best friend like an open book. She saw the look in her eyes when she heard Eren speak about his experience in the titan attack. “Well if you say so. I’m heading to bed,” Mel yawned. “You coming?

“Later,” Tay said. “I’ll be a moment.”

“Okay.” Mel watched as Tay gently lifted her skirt to make her way down the steps without tripping, and began to take a walk with her sketchbook in her hand. Mel shook her head, but she couldn’t help but smile at her friend. She was so proud to see that she stayed after all, and she was more than confident that her best friend would be able to achieve her goals.

Taylor looked around as she passed by several other cabins housing the other cadets. As she looked, Mikasa was beginning to pass by. She kept looking at her hair and was thinking about deciding on what length to shorten it.

“Hey, Mikasa?”

Mikasa looked in her direction.

“I, uh…didn’t really get a chance to speak to Eren earlier. Can you tell me where he went?”

“He went for a walk over that way.” Mikasa pointed in the direction at where she would find him.

Tay smiled. “Thank you.”

Mikasa gave her a slight nod, and Tay made her way towards the direction where Mikasa pointed her to. 

As she predicted, Eren was standing by one of the trees and looking over the training field. Those memories of when they were children and his big talks about how he wanted to join the Scout Regiment came flooding back. Now that time has finally come. Despite the circumstances that led him here, Eren was glad he was much closer to getting his chance at revenge against those beasts.

“Hey.”

Eren turned around to see a short brown-haired girl approaching her, holding her journal close to her chest.

“I didn’t get a chance to say hello in the mess hall,” she murmured, smiling.

“Oh, it’s you,” he exclaimed. “You know, I never thought I would see you in a place like this.”

“Shocking, isn’t it?” Tay agreed with a slight chuckle. “It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah, it has. Your hair is shorter.”

Tay habitually ran her fingers through her hair. Despite the breeze on the back of her neck, she definitely preferred it to be a much shorter length. “I thought it would be easier to maintain. I like it a lot shorter.”

“Smart. It’ll make working with ODM-gear a lot easier. How’s your brother?”

“Clovis is doing much better nowadays.” Tay’s smile faded. “Eren, I…I’m really sorry to hear about what happened.”

Eren tensed up at the mention of it, and Tay immediately felt bad at reminding him.

“Oh, I didn’t mean—”

“I know you didn’t,” Eren snapped, immediately making Tay go quiet. “What happened happened, but I’m not gonna let it hold me back. I’ll take back my home and I’ll butcher every last titan that comes my way. I swear it.” 

“Nice to see you haven’t changed at all.”

“Hmph. Funny you say that when you’re interested in the MPs. I never expected someone like you to even be interested in them.”

“You and me both.” Tay’s face reddened as she rubbed the back of her neck. “But it's for a good reason. At least I can do my part to at least try to make a little bit of a difference.”

“I guess.” Eren didn’t smile as he crossed his arms. “But I gotta ask, of all the places you had to choose, it just had to be the Military Police?”

Tay looked up at him in confusion. “Well, yeah. I mean, I’m no fan of them, either, but I’m only doing it for my family and to get stronger.”

“Is that what you've been telling yourself?”

Tay was taken aback by that remark. “Excuse me?” 

Eren was caught off-guard by Tay’s response. The first time he met her, she was so meek and quiet, more so than Armin. The only thing he ever saw her get mad was when those three bullies snatched her sketchbook and dropped it into some mud, but even then she didn't really do much to defend herself when he, Mikasa, and Taylor beat them up—Mikasa was the only one who came out without a scratch.

“Well I just mean that…you know, you really think you have what it takes?”

“Oh, you don't think I can't work hard enough to get into the interior?” Tay put her hands on her hips.

“I never said that,” Eren muttered.

“That's what you insinuated.”

“I just mean you were never the best at fighting back.”

“Yeah?” Tay crossed her arms. “What about that time I kicked you down when you tried to steal from me?”

“That's completely different.”

“I managed to knock you down.”

“That's because I haven't eaten in days, I didn't have much strength, so that was your only advantage.” Eren was growing more agitated. Normally Tay would clam up when someone got angry at her. Not this time.

“You know, I was really looking forward to catching up with you and us becoming good friends, but now I think my biggest goal is to get stronger enough to kick your ass.”

“Hah!” Eren laughed. “Get real. You expect me to believe you would change your mind about the MPs after you compared them to a bunch of lazy pigs?” 

“Times change.”

“Come on, Taylor. What are you really hoping to fight for?”

Come to think of it, Taylor never really thought to ask her that. Anytime she was asked why wanted to join the Military Police, it was a different response each time: For the sake of giving her family a better life, to become a stronger person who didn’t need to hide behind her friends for protection, to dedicate her heart to the king. But deep down, Taylor could feel there was always something missing. She wanted more than just the simple life. If it was any different, she would hope to see a new world, to paint something beautiful and to do something worthwhile.

“I have plenty of reasons, thank you,” Tay replied with snark in her voice.

“Hmph. Thought you would say that.” Eren could tell that what she was saying was bullshit. “Well don’t act so shocked when Shadis screams at you again and you go crying to your m—” Eren suddenly stopped talking.

Tay felt him tense up. “What?” she asked.

Eren’s fists trembled. He was fighting back his emotions so hard. Then he scoffed. “Forget it. Have fun with your little friends in the interior for all I care.”

“Yeah, good luck getting through the first week, you suicidal bastard.”

Eren stopped walking and turned around as Tay began to storm off. He was actually stunned that she, the girl who froze up like a deer in the woods, told him off the way she did. Eren didn’t even consider that what he said was out of line, but in his mind the Military Police were full of people who just wanted to cheat their way through life. And that’s exactly what Tay was doing, he knew what she was saying was absolute bullshit.

But Tay wasn’t going to give up so easily. She would show Eren, Shadis, and Nathanael that she was capable of earning her spot in the Military Police. At least it was better than spending your days not knowing whether or not it would be your last stepping outside those walls. As the moon began to rise over the camp for the 104th Cadet Corps, the first day starting the next three years of hell had ended.

[wtftarot]

Review of "Five Card, Indepth Reading on Career" (7/20/24)

LISTEN UP Y'ALL, Ash's intuition is not to be fucked around with. Even without me posing a specific Tarot question related to career, she picked up SO MUCH that even I am shookth and in AWE of the absolute amount of specific details she picked up: past, present, future, even more "mundane" details (like Spirit telling me to get into a specific niche hobby I've been putting off)! 😂 

The full dirty details (Warning: in ADHD word vomit form) are down below in terms of how MUCH got picked up if you're somehow curious/nosy of what went down in my personal reading. ☕ 

For those with less time to mull over the specific proof, here's the TLDR; version of my review of Ash's tarot services:

Ash's tarot readings are piercingly insightful, accurate, and reliable. She delivered the reading (and my requested pictures of the cards!!!) in a timely, friendly manner (hell, even within the next morning upon yesterday's payment?!). Best $13 I ever spent, especially given other pricer readings I've seen in and outside of Tumblr. 

Definitely give her a try, cause while she'll be honest about what she finds, she's also no monster in what she delivers either. Definitely wanna order another reading from her again when the calling is right. All in all, her readings are good medicine for the soul, I would say! 💪🤩

-----------------

Excerpt of My Live Reaction Upon Receiving my Reading (LMAO, so sorry Ash, I word vomited all over your DMs 😂):

Holy fucking crap. I'll be sure to save your reading and the pictures, to post it on a wall somewhere to remind myself by! No regrets buying your five card indepth reading cause like I said, HOLY. CRAP?!! 

Cause real talk, Ash: you picked up on a LOT more than I expected even without me giving you a specific question related to my career! 🤯 

As for things that stood out to me in terms of your uncanny accuracy and wisdom, I'll try to keep them in specific order of the cards [Warning: Enthusiastic ADHD Word Vomit Ahead]:

1.) For the 6 of Pentacles: It's funny you took certain specific words right out of my mouth. I had this exact thought to myself yesterday upon ordering the reading and on a whim, decided to use some of extra funds towards donating other people/causes: "When [I] have a bit extra, I like to share it," since life tends to flow in cycles of scarcity/abundance just like the seasons and it's easier to give when one's own cup is full, to borrow a popular saying. 

2.) Page of Cups: Even without me posing a specific question to you about career, you amazingly picked up that YES, I am looking into a new role/field even though I don't know what that is yet. 🤔 Hell, I remain surprised by the new job titles I see on websites cause there's a lot more now than I ever originally conceived of since my early 20's. Hell, my *current* job and company didn't exist until about post-pandemic fter getting laid-off from a previous company that I was at for 6-ish years. Life works in funny ways, dude! 🤷 Am trying to keep faith that something (intuitively) "right" will turn up for me, so long as I stay open-minded and hopeful in my research exploration. I'm trying to be less rigidly logical about my job search as I was in the past--heck, my inner romantic (?) also keeps hoping that I'll be pleasantly surprised by whatever I find or get offered. 😂 Your interpretation just gave me even more of hope of that, so thank you so much! 🥹

3.) Regarding the 4 of Wands & 3 of Cups being reversed: LMAO, I am honestly am not surprised that's how my coworker situation starts out at first. 😂 I tend to be very task-focused when I'm on the clock, making it likely that coworkers may not know what to make of me at first. The examples you gave of them possibly being the type to go to bars or be vastly younger than me are self-accuratelu plausible reasons on why we may not 'click' at first, despite me studiously also not being the type to seek or "get pulled into drama." While I'm civil and aspire to be helpful, I know my introversion and task-focus doesn't make me come off as personable or easy-to-read either. 😅 The fact that I'm primarily here at work to Get Shit Done™ (eeeey, my Aries Rising/Capricorn Midheaven!) probably does put some people off from me at first. 🤷 The fact you picked up on such personality details or examples is amazing! 😍 

4.) Regarding seeing an image of "someone painting lil figurines or something small like that": Holy crap amiga, I don't know what what specific clairvoyant ability you'd call yours (but you should definitely look into the names of different types), but it's just so fucking HILARIOUS you'd affirmed something that my own gut has been nudging me towards! 😂 Cause yeah, I need more creative outlets that aren't purely just mental/screen-oriented (ie. my creative writing) for my own sanity. Something more grounding, more hands-on. Something to redirect my (occasionally neurotic, IMO) detail-oriented, systematic brain. 😅 

Have you ever seen videos or photos of minature art, where people make small-scale replicas of entire landscapes, buildings, objects, or even living animals and characters? My heart has been enthralled by such works, and it's just funny and touching that your reading is giving me a nudge to get more into that type of hands-on creativity,  even if it's starting out with something as small as buying a pre-made model kit of a minature bookstore filled with cats...or whatever. 😂 

5.) It's also amazing how you picked up on a current (?!) and/or past energy of where I HAVE "taken on a lot at my job, like more than you [I] should've had to." This was especially true during the years of being a first-time team leader during the Pandemic Era within an "essential" job (no staying at home for me, just constant overtime!). 🙄 Such a painful, despairing experience opened a lot of wisdom into healthier boundaries & sense of self-responsibility, reevaluating my standards and personal values, and increasing emotional awareness (especially of old childhood dynamics that I was unconsciously encouraging in myself/others who were enabled by my own overworking behaviors). 

I'll leave myself open to being pleasantly surprised if my future self somehow overcomes scars around leadership and a new industry leads me back into a "managerial or leadership role fairly quickly." Thankfully, you also included the word "may" so that promotion remains by choice and it's not like I owe that company anything. 🤷 Regardless, finding an industry that gives me the opportunity to establish myself or even to "build a whole ass life around" sounds like a dream come true, honestly. 😂 (So long as I balance that out with self-care & other life areas, of course!) 

---

Wishing you all the peace and prosperity, just like how you brought a sense of peace and hope into my heart, Ash! 🥹🫶

[relatioshipsafe]

Women and men communicate differently with women being more verbal and vocal and men not so much. Women are also much more emotional and many would "argue" speak an entirely different language altogether. And some (okay, most) would insist that they encode what they mean or are trying to say behind frivolous words and phrases.

There’s a secret combination of hidden male obsessions. Align all three and you’ve unlocked the mystery of your man’s heart.

But, if you've got one of these beguiling creatures in you life, it's up to YOU to figure her out and figure out what she really means, especially if you want to keep the piece.

Sorry Situations: Just because she apologizes doesn't mean she thinks she was wrong (in fact she probably doesn't believe she was). All it really means is that she's initiating the reconciliation, and the LEAST she expects you to do is admit your faults and say you�re sorry too.

Weighty Issues: Most women want and need to be affirmed and want to know that they are still attractive to their man. So, when she asks if she looks fat, she's simply fishing for compliments and wants to know you think of her as beautiful. Make sure your answer is honest BUT accentuates her attractiveness and her appeal (In fact, if you don't like how she looks, you may want to say, you look lovely in that but I tend to prefer you in a dress, or pants, or in that red outfit, etc)

Her Get Up and Go: She may start hinting that she�s tired or has lots to do tomorrow. She may even suggest that you stay behind and have a good time. Dude, that's you cue to get ready to go.

Kidding Around: She may be complimenting you sense of humor and your disposition with nieces and nephews, but in reality she wants to know your thoughts on kids, having some of your own, and how soon. Even if you don't foresee having children in the immediate future, keep in mind that ladies like to look ahead, well ahead, so, if you're not opposed to the idea (even if it is down the road) give her the answer she's fishing for, or come up with an equally indirect response of your own.

Fine And Seek: She gives every indication that there may be something wrong, but when you ask she assures you it's "nothing". Well guys, you just may be damned if you do and damned if you don't. If you take it at face value that everything is status quo, she'll continue being annoyed, but if do your job and identify the problem, you just may be in for a fight. But, remember she's WAITING for you to figure it out and to be given the chance to get it off her chest.

GET FREE GOOD ADVICE FOR A GOOD AND LONG RELATIONSHIP HELP.

[ellieswaifu]

hey i just discovered you through your RE5 Jill story and omg it's so good. Could I request some more Jill x f!reader? Something taking place during the night of og RE3?

all i ever wanted.

summary. you tend to jill’s wounds and jill realizes she has some things left to say to you. ┆masterlist

content warnings. jill valentine x f!reader, ummm fluff, angst if u squint, friends to lovers trope, mentions of blood, pain, also jill is hot, also not proofread *thumbs up* :^)

word count. 2.2k+ !

a/n: i like writing jill fics hehe i rlly hope u like it anon :) spent a lot of time thinking about what to write but it’s finally here!

the steel of jill’s handgun rests cold and heavy in the palm of her hands. her fingertips smooth over the neat S.T.A.R.S engraving, carved into the side of the barrel. jill gripped her gun even tighter, longing for the past where things seemed better and easier, away from the constant death and horror she had seen. a sigh falls from her lips as she let eyes close shut, replaying the dreadful memory where her comrade, brad, died at the hand of that… monster. just thinking about it sent shivers down her spine.

the sound of a chair sliding across the floor pulled her out of her thoughts immediately, opening her eyes to see you. you had managed to pull jill into the police department after she had tried fighting against that monstrous creature. and of course, jill didn’t come out unscathed. she was bleeding on her forehead, her arm and her abdomen, so you took the liberty to find as much material, herbs and bandages inside the building.

you glanced down at the gun in jill’s hand, reading the engraving quickly before she put it away into one of her holsters. you felt a sense of sorrow radiating from her and you couldn’t help but sigh. you weren’t a part of that team she was in. instead, you specialized in forensics at the raccoon city police department. but everyone knew about how elite and brave they were, a rescue team filled with so many talented soldiers, until one day, they were shut down. jill was suspended a short while after when she kept investigating umbrella against the chief’s orders. 

and you were, without a doubt, attracted to her and her compassion and drive to help people. her undeniable anger towards the umbrella corporation and her determination to expose them intimidated you a bit, if you were being honest, but even then, it made you all the more attracted to her. she also always went to you whenever she needed help with something, always running tests for her in secret or answering confidential questions whenever she needed, and it wasn’t solely because you liked her, but she was a dear friend you cared about and you trusted her with every ounce of your being. you trusted jill to do good; you always believed that.

“we need to get going. find a way out of the city,” jill looks straight on ahead, staring at the walls of the police station, ignoring the pain in her body. “we can’t stay here.”

“slow down, supercop. you won’t be able to get anywhere with you bleeding out like this,” you told her with your medical supplies ready in the palm of your hands. “can you— fuck, lift your shirt.”

jill obeyed your orders, wincing in pain as she lifted the hem of her blue tube top up slightly, watching as you pulled yourself closer to inspect her wounds. it was bad. that’s what you expected. you knew it was going to be bad, but this… blood rushing down her side, skin torn, ripped.

“fuck, jill,” you say, taking a moment to stare at the gash on the side of her lower abdomen, near her hips.

“it’s not that—” she starts and all you can do is scoff as you reach for the gauze.

“don’t you even dare finish that sentence. the fuck you mean it’s not bad? you’re—“ you sigh, trying to keep your cool. “just… shut up and let me take care of you. try not to move.”

jill smiles at your words, hiding it from you as she turns her head away. this wasn’t the first time you patched her up and she’ll be damned if it was the last. but you were always so soft and delicate while you treated her wounds. she absolutely loved it when you took care of her.

and if jill wasn’t so badly hurt, maybe you’d be concentrating less, thinking about her skin on her toned abs right underneath the fabric. but there was no time for that right now. you needed to concentrate. you were lucky to find what you could. the police department itself wasn’t safe anymore along with the rest of the city. and with that monster just outside the walls doing god knows what, you prayed for both of your survival. jill made no room for protest as much as she wanted to. she wanted to keep moving, find a way to leave and escape this hell of a city as fast as she could to get the both of you to safety.

she observed you and your every movement, waiting silently as you pressed against her wound with the gauze. jill clenched her jaw. it hurt, no doubt, so she tried to distract herself by looking at you. she watched your hands closely, watching how they trembled slightly against her skin. you were nervous and scared, she could tell.

“are you okay?” jill asked, eyebrows furrowing in concern.

“i’m fine,” you lie. you’ve never been more scared in your life. “besides, i think i’m the one that’s supposed to be asking that.”

“i’ll live... you don’t have to lie to me, (y/n). you can tell me anything,” she tells you, leaning in slightly to get a good look at your face. “you mean more to me than anyone else, you know that.”

you cheeks warm up at her words, “i know.”

there was dirt on your skin, small cuts on your cheek, your eyes looked tired with heavy eyelids, but you looked more alert than she’s ever seen you be. but you still looked beautiful to her. she wondered how you looked so pretty even with all the shit that’s been happening around you. you were so close to her and jill couldn’t help but stare. your lips looked plump and soft. your eyebrows furrowed in a way that made her heart race, watching the determination and focus was written all over your face. and your shirt hugged your body in all the right places, the right curves. she bit her lip. not even feeling an ounce of regret for staring so hard at you. it helped distract her from the pain anyways.

you were there with her when she was about to leave. you went to go find her before she left. even asked you to come with her a couple days ago. you were the only one at the station that believed her after the incident at the mansion. everyone else laughed at her stories before she got suspended. jill cared about you. like really cared about you. she never knew how to deal with her feelings. always felt like the wrong time, always felt like she had no time. she didn’t know if she could be the right person for you, but thinking about it, she wanted to be anyways, despite what her thoughts tell her.

you place a compressor down at the wound and it soaks up in a matter of seconds. you grab more, running them along her toned abs. fuck, you really need to focus. and jill doesn’t fail to notice your stare. it almost made her smile, if she wasn’t in so much pain right now. although, she’d doing a pretty good job holding her facade.

“did you ever change your mind about leaving with me?”

you bit your lip, holding in a small chuckle as you wrapped the bandages around her figure with your arms, leaning closer towards her. jill holds in a breath, feeling a tad nervous about how close you were to her body. now, it was her turn to focus.

“i don’t think i have much a of a choice now, do i?” you retort.

jill waits for a moment before speaking as you finish securing the bandages, neatly tucking it into the wrap. “i’m being serious. i wanted you to leave with me.”

you pause and stare at her face, “why?”

jill sighs and turns her head, scratching the back of her neck. if you didn’t know any better, you’d fail to notice that this was the way jill acted when she was nervous.

“i was waiting. we would’ve left earlier if you said yes.”

“are you seriously blaming me right now?” you smirked.

“no! no…” jill takes a deep breath and turns back to look at you. “i just… i’m not good at this, (y/n). i care about you a lot. i wanted to be able to protect you. and i knew something was going to happen. that’s mostly the reason why i stayed a little longer. to wait and see if you’d change your mind… and that…”

you wait, hands resting in your lap, as you stare at her. you must be dreaming right now, you think. because, it was beginning to sound like…

“i’m in love with you.”

a confession.

the way your lips part in awe almost has jill breaking a sweat. your eyebrows raised slightly as you continue to gaze at her. her cheeks warm up as she turns away to look at anything else but your face. it felt embarrassing and she began to think about how much of a bad idea it was. she felt that she wasn’t thinking clearly. that maybe, it must be because she lost some blood that she even began talking about this.

“i did.”

blue eyes met yours as jill turned and blinked, confused at what had just left your mouth, “what?”

“i did,” you repeat. “i changed my mind.”

jill does nothing but open her mouth to speak, but nothing ever comes out. she rubbed her clammy hands against the fabric of her skirt as she continued to stare at you silently.

“i thought about it for a while. the reason why i came to find you earlier… was because i wanted to leave with you. i should’ve called. i even packed my bags,” you say softly. “but then… all of this happened. aren’t we lucky?”

your thumb rubbed over the muscle of her arm delicately which drove jill insane, feeling the way your skin felt against hers. you looked away from her eyes nervously. you reached over to grab the bandages again, but jill grabbed your hand and held it softly, intertwining your fingers with hers.

“jill…” you start, lips quivering as you distracted yourself by watching the way she squeezed your hand. “what if we don’t make it?”

“hey, don’t think that,” jill shakes her head and shift in her seat to place her other hand against your cheek. “we will make it out. i promise, (y/n).”

she would do anything to protect you. anything. she’d sacrifice her life for you. she’d go anywhere you go. even when she was about to leave the city, she also planned to come back at some point, just to see you. she wished she had asked you to leave with her sooner. maybe the both of you would be able to avoid all this hell that way.

jill’s thumb smooths over the small cuts on your cheekbone, the skin warm against her palm. only now you noticed how close you two really were. your bodies, just centimeters apart from each other, you hand resting on her thigh. jill swallowed the lump in her throat and breathed in slowly, inching her face closer and closer to yours. you let your eyes close shut as jill leaned forward. she takes a moment to just stare again; how peaceful you looked with your eyes closed, the way your lips parted just for her, and she could feel your breath just on her lips lightly.

jill closes the gap and sighs into your lips, kissing you so gently, worried if she pulled away for just one second, you’d disappear. your lips are soft against hers and jill can’t help but moan lightly as you open your mouth to let her in. her tongue presses up against yours, tasting your mouth with a groan. she can feel your hands against her shoulders, then wrapping your arms around her neck and she pulls you close with her strong hands by the fabric of your shirt. it’s a sloppy kiss, but it was gentle.

when you pulled away slowly, jill traces your jaw with her fingertips, watching closely as you breathe a little heavier than before. your skin against hers makes her head spin and she wanted nothing more than to kiss you all over again.

“i’m in love with you, too,” you say finally, playing with the hair behind jill’s neck.

jill sighs and rest her head on your shoulder, nuzzling her nose slightly against your neck. she’s always wanted to hear you say those words. she’s dreamt of it. one thing she wishes is that this whole confession thing could’ve happened in a different setting. maybe one where she takes you out to dinner or something along those lines.

you feel jill’s hands fall to your waist, running them up and down only a little bit, just to feel you in her hands. after a moment, she breathes you in and smiles against your shoulder.

“thanks for for patching me up,” jill says as she glances down at her neatly wrapped bandages. “you’re always there when i need you. i’m glad your here with me.”

and when the you finish, both of you leave the station, hand in hand, prepared to protect each other and face all of the unexpected battles the night has yet to offer you.

a/n: ty for reading!! hope u enjoi :>

[thebeautyoffanfics]

Can I request Hanako (or Amane Yugi), Teru Minamoto, and Akane Aoi (the male) with a female s/o who is literally invisible to people. (This totally not based on events that actually happened to me-)

Like some people, even her close friends, won’t even notice she’s there and if she’s has to asks something she tends to repeat it or stutter. She also tends to get forgetting or lost on school trips, etc.

This has happened for as long as she could remember and she’s use to it by now but sometimes it still hurts when they forget her

Headcanons please!

hanako x f!reader, teru minamoto x f!reader, akane aoi x f!reader

a/n: sure thing!! I feel like Hanako would understand that as a ghost, so I think I’ll write for him in his ghosty form! I hope that’s alright :)) thank you so much for requesting, and I hope these turn out alright!!

I’m really sorry if these are shorter or poorer than normal, and if they’re formatted strangely- I’m doing my best to get requests done on my phone (´ε｀”)

warnings: none?

word count: 1,414

Hanako <3

He understands, he understands more than anyone- so he thinks. I mean, he’s a ghost. He literally cannot be seen by anyone who isn’t an exorcist, near death, a fellow supernatural, or bound to him in some way.

Still… honestly, he gets pretty defensive over you-

They can’t hear him, but you can. (They can’t hear you, but he certainly can.) It’s honestly somewhat humorous, Hanako standing behind you, shouting that they’d better listen up!!

“IF YOU GUYS MAKE (Y/N) REPEAT HERSELF ONE MORE TIME?? Are they deaf, (Y/N)?? I think they’re deaf?????”

His reactions like that are half-joking-half-serious. He’s genuinely upset that they treat you like that- but he hopes that all his ranting and going on helps you to feel better somehow?

He can’t exactly follow you on trips, but! He makes Yashiro “Honorary (Y/N) Defense”! Meaning, since he can’t, she’ll defend you in his place!

You get interrupted or ignored? Hanako tells Yashiro to help you out, and (though she would any way) she’s raising her hand somewhat shyly- explaining that you were trying to talk.

Getting left behind on a field trip? Yashiro is sticking by your side! She turns around constantly, making sure that you keep up with her, and especially making sure that you get on the bus with the rest! As per Hanako’s request, and her own care for you, she’ll let you sit next to her.

Hanako is always very talkative, but he’s still very patient with you- he loves to have conversations with you, which is a big reason he doesn’t get why they treat you like that. You’re such a great person-! You’ve got such a cute voice-!!! Why don’t they listen-?!!!

To be honest, he finds your stutter kind of cute… he’s quite bold, so you being timid is something he doesn’t mind! Hanako doesn’t mind listening out for you- even if the other people aren’t in a relationship for you, isn’t it… basic human decency?? What happened to that???

“It’s really alright, Hanako. Things like this have happened since I was little- it hurts sometimes, but I’m mostly used to it.”

Hanako would then grab your shoulders gently, looking in your eyes with some determination!

���You shouldn’t have to be used to that!! I’m used to it because I’m dead, but you’re… alive. You can be heard and seen by everyone, yet they choose to not listen- it’s… ridiculous. I’m sorry that you have to deal with that, (Y/N)... really.”

Uncharacteristically soft moment, but it simply hits different for him due to personal experience. I’m sure as a human, the only time people saw him were when he was bullied, and now he’s- obviously- not seen by nearly anyone. It’s such a lonely feeling, and he genuinely hates that you can relate to it.

Teru Minamoto <3

It’s hard to not garner attention as Teru Minamoto’s girlfriend- so, people certainly acknowledge you once your relationship is made public/becomes obvious.

But! Before the entire school knew about the Prince having a girlfriend, Teru was… quite defensive over you- even before the two of you were a couple, he’d notice the way others seemed to step all over you. Ignoring you, interrupting you, forgetting about you.

Like Hanako, he doesn’t get it? You’ve got his attention, how do you not have anyone else’s? You’re so cute… and really do have a lovely voice, appearance, and overall are really pleasant to be around?? If anything you deserve more praise than he does-

He also doesn’t get it due to the fact that people acknowledge him a little too much-

Anyway, he tends to give that praise he thinks you deserve to you!

Meaning, he brags on you so much. Compliments you to your face, telling you how nice it is to converse with you- telling his family how lovely of a person you are. He even mentions it to classmates, which does start to earn others being more noticeable of your presence.

Not afraid to stick up for you in the least!! Who wouldn’t listen to Teru?? The moment someone interrupts, he’s politely making his way into the conversation- offering an “I’m sorry, I don’t think (Y/N) got her chance to speak.”

“Th-That’s okay, Teru. I appreciate it, but I’m used to things like that,” You told him after class, slightly embarrassed.

“Used to things like being ignored?”

“Yeah..?”

“...you shouldn’t have to be. I’d never be upset with you, but it does upset me that people have been so willing to pretend you aren’t there? I think you’re lovely, and nearly impossible to ignore. It’s simply confusing, I suppose.”

BRO if he, for some reason, isn’t on the field trip and you get forgotten- it’s game over for the chaperones will get their heads chewed off. Except he’ll be calm and collected while doing so- however, on the inside, he can’t express how upset he is.

“Is it not your job to make sure all the students are accounted for? What if (Y/N) had gotten lost? Do you not realize she could have been kidnapped? Should some low-life had decided to try anything strange, the blame would have been on you, and therefore our entire school. What would that do for both your’s and the school’s reputation?”

If he’s on the trip? You won’t be getting forgotten <3 Even you were to get distracted for a moment, he’s grabbing your hand and making sure you stay caught up with the class. Sits with you on the bus, and makes absolutely sure that you’re safe and with him!!

Akane Aoi <3

He worships the very ground you walk on. We all know how he treated Aoi? Well, now that’s how he treats you- maybe a bit less exaggerated and dramatic, but all that love and more is there!

So, he’s admiring you, and sees that you keep opening your mouth in an attempt to speak- only to have someone interrupt you, not even acknowledging that you’re there??

“Hey, (Y/N), what’s up?”

“O-oh, I was just trying to ask them something…”

“Oi, you heard her. Shut up for a moment and let (Y/N) get her question in.”

Most are somewhat aware of how scary Akane can be, so they’ll certainly listen whenever he’s there. Heck, people occasionally keep an extra eye open if they know he’s around- making sure they don’t unintentionally look past you.

If you dislike his very direct method, he’ll try to be nicer to others about it. But, he can’t help but get defensive- like our other boys, he admires you so much, and enjoys talking with you so much, that- by this point- others are simply missing out?? Like, it’s basically their loss for treating you like that. And it’s his mission to shower you in love and admiration to a point where others do the same- platonically of course, and boys better rethink anything that isn’t strictly “wow (Y/N) is cool, it’s cool that she’s taken by Akane.”

Cos, as we all know, if someone even says “oh, (Y/N) probably makes a cute girlfriend” it’s game over. RIP unknowing student, he had no mercy bashing their skull in </3

“Akane, it’s really fine, you know? Things like this happen been happening since... forever. I’m just not easily noticed, I suppose. I’m used to it!”

“Hmm... well, get un-used to it. You’ve got the most beautiful presence and voice of anyone I know! And, I want the class- for everyone- to be able to acknowledge that. You shouldn’t have to repeat yourself constantly, nor be ignored like that. Not on my watch, at least.”

You won’t be getting forgotten. He’s ahead of Teru, ahahahaaaa!!! If he isn’t on the field trip, he’s telling someone who will be to keep an eye out for you “or else <3”. The person wouldn’t even bother to question it- just nod and keep an eye out for you constantly. They even offer to have you sit with them! How sweet! Glad to know they value their skulls!!

If he’s on the trip, like the others, he’s keeping an eye out for you constantly. He’ll hold your hand the entire time, stopping as you pleased, but keeping an eye out for the group. He wants you to see what you want, so you will- all while staying with the class, or at least close to the class. If he, for some reason, were to lose sight of the class, he takes comfort in the fact that you wouldn’t be lost alone.

[shijiujun]

on the danmei twitter fight

okay guys i didn’t wanna say anything about this and yes it’s that hot danmei twitter translations saga thing that’s going on, because honestly i feel like there’s nothing much to say but when i see dumb posts on tumblr taking about that, by people who present a misleading hot take and their friends or moots run off with it without even knowing what exactly is going on - it really pisses me off.

and also if you shit talk translators for not continuing their translations or locking their translations whatever - the door is that way on your right and left, but anyway here’s a rundown on what happened because i am seeing people make comments without two brain cells put together, without the slightest bit of consideration for the people who bring them translations

here’s my hot take and thesis: if you enjoy english translations made by fan translators, you don’t, in any way, no matter happens, shit talk fan translators. fan translators do this for free, and whatever their intentions are, whether genuine sharing or like some of you like to say, for clout, if you consume, and you enjoy these translations, i’m sorry, you’re not uninvolved, and you don’t get to sit on a high horse and say translators should or shouldn’t do something. you should just keep quiet, honestly, because someone else is doing you a favour, a favour that you are enjoying and taking. that’s what respect is.

i’m presenting both sides or i guess three sides of the story as objectively as i can, altho my support is still for fan translators who were just minding their own business before this blew up.

===

🔺 what happened:

so it started because one of the bigger translators in the fandom did this poll - i’m not blaming her at all, i doubt she had any intentions of shaming anyone or causing any controversy and was plain curious, but her poll asked english speaking danmei twitter how many people buy the digital, print copies of the danmei they read, and who did not. 

in my honest opinion, it’s not strange at all for her to have created that poll, considering just how much work she’s put into making sure things are accessible for the eng-speaking danmei fandom. i mean i’d be curious too, to know out of my thousands of readers, what the reading and buying behaviour is like. do yourself a favour and don’t read too much into it.

obviously in an era where a lot of people do consume content for free whether the underlying content is profit-making (like anime, donghua, manhua, manga etc.) or not (fanfiction etc.), it was unsurprising to see that the last option - the ones who consume danmei without paying a single cent, came out as the majority. i don’t think this is a surprising result at all, for all sorts of reasons that i will not get into now.

anyway, this is obviously kind of a sore point in the fandom especially for translators who want a wider audience to support their fave author’s works - i won’t get into that for now, but the issue began because other translators or fans started to criticize the majority of people who don’t pay for objectively rather affordable danmei and just consume things for free. 

and yes, i don’t deny that the argument on both sides got really heated and emotionally charged with both sides calling each other names which i believe is uncalled for, but it totally derailed the crux of the issue, which basically is that the majority of english-speaking danmei fandom - consumes danmei for free.

anyway this whole thing escalated and fan translators were brought into this for no fucking reason at all except that the people who didn’t want, or were unable to pay for the danmei they usually consume, made what i call a LOGICAL FALLACY in argument by going to the extremes, i will explain why later.

the end result is that fan translators were brought into this (most of them, the bigger ones i know at least) without even participating in the direct crossfire. and obviously, you can see why they’re hurt and decided to lock their translations. let me explain why

===

🔺 kind of like four camps:

(1) translators and fans who criticized those who consume danmei liberally but do not pay for them in any way - no merch, no digital copies, no physical copies, no audio dramas whatever

*** their arguments:

danmei is so cheap right, that technically people should be able to pay for it in one way or another, even if not all

danmei and its authors are, at the end of the day, out here to earn a living, and the industry, like any money-making industry, is a for-profit enterprise - and unlike public goods, if you cannot afford danmei, then there is no obligation for others to make it free for you (fan translators or otherwise, it wasn’t super clearly stated while this shitshow happened) when it is inherently a for-profit industry

yes, i don’t deny that some of them did call the peeps who don’t pay at all, “leeches” and other sort of names. personally, i wouldn’t go that far or even like venture there to be honest because in general, if it’s something that i’ll get punched in the face for if i called someone that in real life i tend not to do it, but i’ll leave my opinions, whatever they’re worth, for later

(2) the readers and fans of danmei who do not pay in any sort of way for them

*** their arguments:

some of them really cannot afford, even the dollar or more, to spend on danmei for several reasons: upbringing, culture, money-spending mindsets, real poverty, struggling to make ends meet etc. - some definitely more valid than others (and when i say not valid, it’s because SOME, a minority or like those few stragglers, say they cannot afford and then you see them like idk, throwing $50 on other merch on kpop and stuff - i’m just bringing up ONE example. not shaming anyone for spending more money on one aspect rather than the other, but yeah you can see why some of them, when making this same argument, are a little invalid, that’s just a small number of them tho)

if translators are blaming them for consuming free of charge, then the fault lies, at its foundation, fan translators who translate illegally, which i mean, in that definition, all of them including me 

did i mention that we were called illegal translators like you know in response to being called leeches? anyway-

(3) others translators who literally were just minding their own fucking business before some smart alec dragged them into it

i don’t think most of us had an argument. we were just quietly munching on popcorn and staying out of it and yeah, can you imagine, we provide a service, however illegal it is, for free on our own time, we don’t even check whether people support legally or not, we just... provide, and pray that those who are able to, at least support in some small way or another do so, on their own time. i mean i don’t check, most of us don’t, not the bouncers at your local club before COVID happened do, and then suddenly, to be used to derail an argument, we were called illegal translators. and that we should stop translating, and that it is our fault that there are free riders in the fandom

(4) people who offered to provide JJWXC credits to those who said they couldn’t afford it etc.

honestly i think they were just trying to help - no different than a gofundme. there’s no shame in taking a free thing that people already weren’t intending to pay for. it’s there, just take it!

===

🔺 the shitshow that led to fan translators locking their stuff up:

i would provide some actual examples in the form of screenshots but i’ve blocked most of them, and i don’t want to direct any sort of traffic to them so i guess you’ll have to take my word on it or go search on twitter yourself but-

(1) the affordability issue: i can understand the frustration at being called leeches, and some if not a majority of people, do have valid reasons for not being able to afford something or anything and end up pirating content they enjoy. hey, i am not about to crucify anyone for pirating at some point in their lives. we all have done it at some point, or for example hate disney+ and that $30 they were trying to rip off us for a subpar Mulan live action. i don’t have anything to say about that. inherently, is it wrong and illegal? yeah sure of course it is. do we call people leeches? i wouldn’t go that far.

if anyone cannot afford, cannot access for whatever reason, fine, i’m not gonna go check if jjwxc truly is banned in your country, or is your postal service so terrible that you definitely won’t be able to receive a hard copy of the book you like at affordable rates.

and if you have to pirate? go ahead. i mean it’s always been a rampant thing. the only thing fan translators and fans can do is encourage, motivate and incentivise as much as possible to get people to support legally. they can only put up REALLY COMPREHENSIVE guides as to how to access jjwxc or taobao or whatever. 

and if you still cannot afford it and pirate, honestly no one cares about the story behind it. you owe no one justification, just as how no other person is obligated to take it into consideration or understand you or empathize with you. i don’t say this in a malicious way - i do think that in general, you just do you. 

(2) the poor people don’t deserve nice things argument: honestly, this was not the point of this entire debacle, altho yes, people were rude to those who could not afford to support legally. but this is not the point of this whole thing.

main point - there are free riders who can support but choose not to because they choose to just consume it for free and if you are able to you should support

everyone going off on a tangent - you guys hate poor people / you guys are leeches

well guess what, no one wins in this argument. 

there were a lot of people saying “reading danmei is our only source of happiness, are you saying poor people who can’t access legally don’t deserve to read danmei” (this is just one example i’ve seen, there are other variations), and it wasn’t put across perhaps in the right way, but the other camp of people were saying “you’re not entitled to it for free if you cannot afford it”, which raised a lot of hackles and anti-poor yellings 

altho i do not deny that there are those who mean it maliciously, i think what everyone is trying to say is - the danmei industry, like any other profit-making industry, is looking to make profits. the people working in the industry, the authors even, are looking at numbers - traffic to jjwxc or other legal platforms, how much revenue they’re making from their live actions etc., comments, rankings, etc. i think @/hunxi-after-hours made a really succinct post on this aspect which yall should read.

it’s the same as - if you wanted to purchase a standee which costs $20 USD, but you cannot afford it = you don’t get it. there’s no way you can get this standee unless some gifts it to you for free. what the camp trying to ask people to support legally is saying, is that danmei is NOT A PUBLIC GOOD. it is a private, for-profit product. it might be intangible, but it is a PRODUCT that has a price that needs to be paid.

if you cannot afford it, you either don’t get access entirely (i’m saying this objectively and honestly from an economic standpoint). if someone gifts that standee to you for free, count yourself lucky - if someone makes a danmei accessible to you for free, COUNT YOURSELF LUCKY. you don’t have to be grateful and treat them as gods or like obey their every word, but it’s not rocket science. someone did you a favour that you accepted and consumed, show some respect. 

if you cannot afford to buy the standee - you do not go on twitter demanding that someone ensures that you have access to the standee for free. do you see how ridiculous this sounds once it’s a tangible product? and danmei novels ARE PRODUCTS. they are not FREE CONTENT. if someone cannot afford the standee, this is the equivalent of people going “we didn’t get the standee for free because poor people don’t deserve nice things”

totally missing the point. i don’t even know how it got to this. once again, i do admit that some users were unnecessarily mean, but going to the extreme of this is ridiculous. in argumentative essay writing we call this a logical fallacy:

e.g. “if you cannot pay for merchandise or danmei, it is a fact that you might not have access to it” morphing into “if we cannot pay for food, does this mean we cannot have access to it?!” - this is a slippery slope, and factors are not equivalent!!!! do they not teach people anything in school

don’t confuse fanfiction with danmei - danmei novels ARE PAID PRODUCTS unless for free chapters, just because it’s released online doesn’t mean it’s free public property, and also selected novels (did you guys know the WHOLE of SCI novel is free? about 500 chapters sorry, random, just a tidbit)

there are of course nuances right, like if anyone told me they were pirating disney+ content i’d be like yeah hey get one over those bloodsuckers, they take enough of our money and produce shit content anyway. the difference is that danmei authors, and the danmei industry itself can still be considered a nascent and not-yet matured industry, with a majority of authors if not all, depending on monetary flow, likes, comments, virality on the sites their content is hosted on, for a living, unlike hugeass MNCs trying to squeeze us dry for content that isn’t even interesting.

danmei is priced rather reasonably - and this brings me to another argument that was made, that the value of money is not the same for everyone. i don’t want to make comments on this because yes this is correct to a large extent. a $6 book might be cheap to most of us, but might be expensive to someone else. i’m not gonna comment on how cheap or whatever it is, if you gotta use your money for other things, definitely! i still maintain however, that a novel less than a dollar should be affordable to most people, a majority of people. and i definitely side eye some users who obviously have money but are just creating noise because they wanna continue free-riding

(4) the “they’re losing out on their international audience” argument: honestly, i feel like english-speaking danmei fandom gives themselves a bit too much credit. danmei has long thrived in china in its domestic market - sure the international audience is a plus to have and i’m sure the authors are grateful and flattered that people who don’t understand chinese love their content and love it a lot, but do they and their companies care about fans who basically don’t bring in money? i’m not sure (okay i’ll get to the fan translators doing illegal shit later okay i got it don’t be impatient)

and international fans are great, i don’t deny that - but when i see arguments like “oh but it’s their loss if they don’t cater or deny access to us, they get more popularity and sharing overseas”, i honestly think they don’t care as much as you think. once again, hunxi made a really good argument regarding non-sinophone audiences, but it really irks me, because this is the same as:

an instagram influencer saying they’ll give a restaurant exposure for free to their followers, if they get a free meal

it’s par for par - danmei authors wants earnings, popularity, tangible results that show that they are succeeding. this is life. if i put something out there for sale, i better be getting returns, simple economic logic. they probably don’t care that a non-paying reader is bringing them greater ‘exposure’ - once again, i mean this objectively. 

and yes if they’re thriving without the international market then why should it matter that people are pirating right? which brings me to the next point~

(5) it’s fan translators faults for so many people pirating, and fan translators are the ones doing the “illegal” work: this one is like... wow where do i unpack this and how-

firstly, we are talking about assholes who can pay but decide to free ride and not pay for danmei, and we assume that if you really cannot afford and have to pirate, no one’s saying anything as long as you don’t go around spreading how to pirate, how the hell did it get to fan translators from “you guys are anti-poor” and whatever

yes, fan translations are indeed illegal, i don’t deny that, and i also don’t deny that there are translators who translate for clout and popularity but putting these aside - here’s what i have seen from people who ran their mouths and made this argument

“if you guys care about us pirating the book so much than fan translators shouldn’t have translated in the first place” and “if you wanna come after us for reading illegally, then fan translators, you guys should go get the copyright for the book and then translate it cuz what you guys are doing is also illegal”

hooooo i’m telling ya, i am all for translators locking up their translations at this point. see how fucking hurtful that is? you eat from my hand and then now you biting at the hand that fed you the gays in love?

honestly if you’ve made this argument or supported this, you can basically go to hell. yes this is personal because what, you think fan translators don’t take out their personal time and effort and hard work to make translations accessible to you? if you’re ever consumed and read translations, don’t be a hypocrite and make this argument. you benefitted from it, now you wanna say it’s their fault? 

most translators want to share and spread the love they have for a novel right, want to show you how wonderful all these authors are, how much enjoyment u get from reading these wonderfully thought out stories of gays in love. yes we all know we are illegally translating, which is why on top of sharing we first, purchase the novels legally ourselves first, and then we try to encourage people to buy etc. and actually put their money to use. it doesn’t make it any less illegal, but we are bridging the gap between danmei and basically the english-speaking fandom, albeit illegally

we aren’t that self-important to ask for gratefulness but some respect would be nice. like i said, you read it, you consumed it, you enjoyed it, you can only access it because of illegal translators - a bit counter-intuitive to yell at these translators, who are simply telling you, if you can, please support. and none of us went “if you cannot afford, begone!”

===

🔺 some people tried to help by offering jjwxc credits so people who cannot afford as they say, can get legal access: honestly, just take it right, guess what some of these users did in response

they said the people giving away credits are trying to redeem themselves for their comments by giving away free stuff

they also said that we are trying to shame the people who cannot afford it with this handout to them, to show that they are the bigger person - the fact that they think this is a handout to them is TELLING. the people offering this is giving their money not to these readers, but to the authors! that’s the point of this exercise!!!

one of them even said “instead of trying to do these giveaways, here, there are greater world problems out there, donate instead to these causes” - love the initiative, but how did we get from being able to afford danmei and entertainment content to saving the world? i just- i cannot

===

🔺 so why i get why fan translators are locking up their translations, because wow, so hurtful:

you have no idea how many fucking assholes went “sure, lock up your translations, deal with the consequences” - ermmmm firstly, thanks for making a threat. like who the fuck do you think you are?

the consequences is... the authors still don’t get the money these free riders weren’t going to give them anyway, so no loss, and they weren’t reading on jjwxc anyway so you know, the authors don’t lose or gain any readership numbers or traffic they didn’t already have. instead, it WILL push and force people to pay for the PRODUCT. once again, it’s a product.

this works, and i’d say Word of Honor’s payment model worked marvellously for Youku, because they fucking forced everyone to pay to access content. ALL OF THEM. sure ok some people still pirated it, but how many MORE people paid on Youku, on Youku Youtube, watched on Viki etc. than if they didn’t? even english-speaking fandom were wracking their brains trying to purchase a Youku pass even if there were no subs initially - and other examples that lovely hunxi brought up in her amazing piece

and for translators?! honestly me for one, i’m glad i don’t feel pressured anymore to churn out a chapter every week since we get called names etc. most of us are glad to have a break to be honest. we’ve lost all motivation to translate because it’s a free service, at the very least we don’t expect like hate, or rudeass fuckers. for those who are doing a proof of purchase thing - go for it honestly! 

hopefully it’ll minimize the free rider problem - some people for whatever reasons really cannot buy or support legally, that’s totally cool and they don’t have to justify it, i get that. but for others making the same argument but obviously are just unwilling to pay because they can’t read chinese, think it’s too troublesome when there are guides and translators provide it for free anyway so what’s the point - we all make concessions and make decisions to grab what we like (not talking about the ppl who have their various troubles and difficulties!)

===

🔺 and those who are saying why is it the ‘rest of us suffer’ from locked translations just because of a few bad apples:

IT ISN’T ABOUT YOU. where the hell were all of ya when we were getting called illegal huh? it’s about us fan translators getting shot at for no reason, and then people still demanding things for free. i don’t see any of the people i’ve seen on tumblr complain about fan translators stopping or locking translations defend any of us in any way. instead, you’re complaining.

it is the translator’s prerogative to start, stop and end translations, unless of course the original author starts to sue i suppose. i see people on tumblr going like if they were gonna do this, they shouldn’t have started in the first place etc. - i don’t what world you live in, but when i do something for free, then get called names and am attacked or get dictated on how i should do something that’s already like free, i tend to be less generous.

i’m sorry, do us illegal and free translators owe ANY OF YOU? i wasn’t aware any of us were being paid for this hobby. readers, especially those who CAN and just refuse to support, don’t get to say SHIT. translators deal with so much shit and so many entitled readers, i say they get to lock whatever they want as long as they aren’t profiting off of this monetarily.

let me give you an example - nan chan, which is translated by lian yin, completed translations by the way for all chapters. it is all free for viewing, and she only locked up one extra and asked for proof of payment. some dumbfuck quotes that locked up extra chapter tweet and said “honestly, this turned me off reading this novel because they restricted access”.

the. fucking. entitlement. the whole of nan chan is free, that’s like what more than 80 chapters. she locked up the EXTRA and the money goes to the author, she doesn’t earn anything. AND HERE THAT BIJ is (yes, i’m going to call them names because you know, fucking asshole who didn’t bother to check) going “yeah i didn’t wanna read because 1/80+ chapters were locked”. 

AN EXTRA. LITERALLY AN EXTRA!!!!!!

at the end of the day, translators are not like DYING to translate, not like some of you are DYING to read the translations. once again, this isn’t a “BE GRATEFUL” message, it’s a please be respectful to the people who put in time and hard work for free and share the goodness ya know? what’s the use of yelling at fan translators as if we owe you anything?

================

🔴🔴🔴 TOO LONG DIDN’T READ 🔴🔴🔴

some people may need really need to pirate - and no one needs to justify why they cannot afford to purchase etc. pirating happens all the time, translators only hope that when you can, and in whatever way you can, to support legally - in general we don’t ask and we get it! we’re just annoyed that some people think that it SHOULD BE FREE, when it is a paid product, especially for those who CAN afford it

readers are not entitled to shit on translators for what they do with their translations - once again, you’re not OBLIGATED to have it. so what if i start and stop? i’m the one doing the work, i get the only say. don’t be a hypocrite and shit on translators, whose works you’ve read - it’s no loss for translators, we read and enjoy danmei just fine

yes, fan translations are illegal, but you can’t read and enjoy them like some of you have, and then turn around and point the finger at translators - a lot of us are happy to stop translating - this isn’t a threat, but at the end of the day, shitting on translators simply decreases access, and sure, some people can indeed live with you know, MTL or shitty translations from people who’ve learnt chinese for only six months or whatever, but you’re gonna be reading an entirely different book tbh

the people saying illegal translators are at fault - funnily enough, most of them consume the translations, so what the fuck? i mean we know it’s illegal, we’re trying to share the love and trying to minimize the illegalities of it by redirecting people to hopefully support legally. it’s still illegal yes, but i think it’s hypocritical for people who have read translations, stab translators in the back. and now that translators are indeed ‘restricting’ and ‘removing’ their ‘illegal translations’, yall yelling again? and threatening?

fan translators aren’t “elitist” or “classist” - just looking for some respect in a community which seems to have taken them for granted, and also looking for support for their fave authors - and honestly a lot of us were caught in the crossfires truly, don’t be an asshole and demand things from fan translators - who are you talking about? do you know why they decided to lock? do you know know what their locking system is like and what for? 

it’s not EASY to lock the translations up - it’s more admin work, it’s putting together a whitelist of people, if given the choice i’m sure translators would prefer to share everything. but not when there are assholes who have a comment on how they should translate etc. and yeah!!! calling us illegal!! i mean we are but still!!

the last straw was seeing that post on tumblr and people in the comments going like fan translators shouldn’t or should do something, without getting the whole picture, without even considering how hard it is for fan translators being caught in this situation. 

whoever puts in the work gets to decide, and everyone else should leave them alone. 

be nice to the people who really cannot afford as they say so (or just don’t think about it), be nice to the translators feeding you content, and the people who free ride and shit on translators - honestly, i’d say ready the pitchforks.

edit: i forgot to mention this is my hot take and i’ve tried to like present all the arguments i’ve seen so far. i’m definitely not doing all of it justice and i don’t claim to speak on behalf of any of them except maybe one or two- and i’ve definitely left out stuff, but anyway, lmao we’re just tiny people doing what we love. i wish we could solve you know inequality or poverty or hunger or other pressing concerns. if i was that great i wouldn’t be stuck on tumblr or twitter or have to make posts like these like a loser.

thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[cantaloupe-draws]

El Chico del Apartamento 512

Irl! Quackity x Female! reader

Summary: Nothing interesting ever happens in the apartment complex you live in. It’s the same old routine for you. Constantly turning down your neighbor and heading too and from your apartment. Well that’s up until you meet the very cute boy that lives in apartment 512 that you can never seem to gather the courage to talk too. To make make matters worse, he shows up to the cafe you work at

Switches from Reader’s s POV to Quackity’s POV at the very end

Genre: Song fic, fluff, somewhat cafe trope, strangers to lovers, crushes

Warnings: use of Quackity’s real name, creepy neighbor, cursing, and I think that’s about it

Song :El Chico del Apartamento 512 by Selena

Lyrics are in bold

—

Every day is the same down the corridor

Every day it’s the same old thing. I pass the same old doors as I make my way towards my own at the end of the corridor. Counting the room numbers as I pass.

“508, 509, 510,-“ I count and but as soon as I reach room 511 the door suddenly swings forward and I’m greeted by both a whistle and Chad, my neighbor.

“Y/n baby I keep on waiting for you to go on a date with me like you promised,” Chad said as he stood in front of his door frame, right arm resting on the door. “I need to show you around town,” he said with a smirk as he rested his face on his fist.

I scoffed as I moved away from him, “The only thing you need right now is an urgent shower. You stink like a pig and it’s absolutely disgusting. Besides, I never promised you anything” I said, trying to continue on my way, but Chad just kept getting more and more persistent with every rejection. His nagging was getting annoying.

“Come Y/n I’ll take you to this bar across town, I’ll even pay for your drinks” he kept persisting.

You would think that any decent guy that’s asking you out on a date would obviously pay for them himself. It’s a given but this is Chad we’re talking about. I was sick of his terrible date ideas and I had to face him once again.

“Listen, I don’t know how many times I’ve told you this and how many times I’ll have to repeat it but, I don’t want to go on these stupids dates with you,” I told him as I rejected for what seemed to be the millionth time. And as soon as I said that the door beside us swung open.

Out came a young man wearing a navy blue cap that was covering almost the entirety of his hair but still managed to expose small tufts of dark brown hair from the sides. He looked up at the predicament Chad and I were both in and I was able to get a good look at him.

He had almond-shaped eyes that were a dark brown color and had various beauty marks scattered around his face. He was attractive. Very VERY attractive. Oh no I’m in deep shit, I thought to myself as I quickly turned away when I felt that I was staring at him for too long. He turns away from us and heads towards the elevator doors.

I stayed stunned for a few moments then turned to face Chad again, completely red in the face, dumbfounded, and at a complete loss for words. But before Chad could get another word out I quickly rushed to my apartment and leaned my back against the door once I got inside. My heart is beating fast and my chest feels tight and constricted. I quickly got myself a glass of water from my faucet and though it helped with my fast heart rate, it didn’t help the butterflies swarming around in my stomach. It might sound crazy but I think I’ve just met the man of my dreams.

Ever since then, I’ve made sure to take my sweet time walking down the corridor in hopes to see the cute boy from apartment 512 again. I’ve gone as far as to purposely make small talk and fake my interest in Chad in hopes to see him once more.

—

The boy from apartment 512 the one who makes my poor heart beat fast.

I walked into the elevator quickly pressing the button towards the first floor when I heard someone yell “HOLD THE DOOR PLEASE!”

Loud footsteps came barreling towards the elevator. The yell of itself was enough to get my blood pumping but, to make matters much worse it was the cute boy from apartment 512 who was coming towards me.

“Thank you so much,” he said out of breath once he got inside. He offered me a smile of gratitude as the elevator doors closed. I noticed that he wasn’t wearing a cap this time but, instead he was sporting a grey beanie with red and blue stripes.

‘He’s the most beautiful man I have ever seen in my entire life’ I internally screamed to myself.

“Yeah, no problem” I responded quietly in hopes I wouldn’t make a fool of myself.

Even if there weren't more than two pieces of dialogue uttered between us, it was enough for my heart to beat faster than the speed of light.

—

The boy from apartment 512 who causes me to stutter like I've never done before.

I was manning the cashier station at the cafe I worked at. It was filled to the brim with people who were either typing away on their laptops or having a conversation with their friends.

But on this day, I had finally learned his name.

The busy atmosphere had me tackling customers' orders from left to right, “Hello, may I take your order?” I said as the next customer approached me.

But surprisingly enough, I was greeted by a familiar face.

The cute boy from apartment 512.

“Yes, hello I would like a caramel macchiato please,” he said and I felt my face go red instantly.

Oh my god, it’s him again, I thought as I knew that my brain would start to scramble once more. “O-of course. Coming right up, n-name?” I asked him as I completely stumbled on my words.

“Alex,” he said, “Okay A-Alex your name will be called out when your order is ready,” I tell him as I continue on with my work.

My coworkers had never seen me lose composure like that. It was clear that they would never let me live this down but even if I made a complete fool of myself in front of him, a huge part of me also just wants to keep talking to him both night and day.

—

But today I have finally truly decided to confess my love to him

I mentally prepared myself for the next time I interacted with Alex. I’ve finally decided that the next time I would run into him, I would finally ask to get to know him better in hopes that one day friendship will blossom into a wonderful relationship. A giddy laugh escaped me as I thought of the idea.

The cafe was busy as usual, with the same groups of people coming in. As it hit peak rush hour the line of customers just kept getting longer and longer and I was attempting to quickly attend to them to the best of my ability. Somehow, this was not enough to deter the feelings of butterflies in my stomach.

I knock on his door and I get goosebumps,

a blonde answers the door and my heart breaks

As I heard the bell above our door ring once more I raised my head and saw him, Alex. He was holding the door open for a woman as she walked in. They stood close together as they waited in line. This might seem like a bit of an exaggeration but when I saw them conversing together waiting in line the butterflies that were once fluttering disappeared and were replaced with dread. As my heart dropped, I realized that one thing was wanting to be friends with him but, that doesn’t change the fact that I had grown feelings for him. If he’s in a relationship then, what now? I felt lost as to how to handle this.

As the line in front of me kept getting shorter and shorter, I was becoming anxious as his turn was approaching. Though as it was almost the pair’s turn to order, Alex suddenly turns around and leaves the line and when his turn arrives he still wasn’t there. Despite this, I still went ahead and tended his apparent girlfriend.

I truly felt my heart breaking into pieces when suddenly she asked:

"Were you looking for my brother?"

“Hello, may I take your order?” I asked her, “Yes, can I have a vanilla latte please? But um, can we wait a couple of minutes for my brother? He went to the restroom and didn’t tell me his order,” she asked. Then the realization hit me like a ton of bricks, this was his sister. I’m so dumb, how could I’ve not realized the resemblance between them?? “Yeah that’s no problem” I finally responded.

Soon enough Alex came rushing towards his sister, “I’m so sorry for the wait” he said once he reached the both of us. “Just hurry it up. I’ll be waiting for you at the table” His sister said as she turned her back to the both of us.

Turning my attention to him as I rang up his order he then speaks up “You’re one of my neighbors aren’t you?” He asks me with a grin. I stop in my tracks as if I’m a deer in headlights.

“Yeah I am actually” I smile at him trying to muster enough courage to continue our conversation.

“I thought so, you were the one who held the elevator door for me the other day right? Also, the one who was yelling at my neighbor.”

My face instantly goes red as I thought back to the first time I met Alex. “In my defense he deserved it. He’s been harassing me ever since I’ve moved in” I shudder at the thought of Chad.

“Yeah I’ve realized that he really is a douche, he enjoys banging on the damn walls at three in the morning” he said as we laugh together at the stupid things Chad has done.

“Okay, okay you’re order will be out shortly,” I tell him with a smile, feeling my heart skip a beat. But Alex doesn’t move from the line.

“To be honest the whole reason I even came here wasn’t really for a drink or anything.” He said gazing towards the floor and rubbed the back of his neck.

“This might be a bit sudden because we’ve barely met but I wanted to actually ask you for your number since you seem really nice and you’re very pretty. If you’re not interested then that’s fine, I’ll just take my drink and go” Alex said sheepishly.

After I heard these words I found myself dumbfounded. At a complete loss for words. ‘DID HE JUST SAY THAT??? HOW DO I RESPOND???’ and from there my mind was absolutely speeding to the point where I just stood there. ‘HURRY UP AND DO SOMETHING!!!’ I yelled at myself, but yet still nothing managed to escape. Alex began to fidget more and more playing with his hands as I just stood there without a response.

“It’s okay, I’ll just go now.” Alex quickly said leaving.

—

Alex’s POV

‘SHIT. FUCK. MOTHERFUCKER. STUPID IDIOT.’

I cursed at myself while I walked towards my sister. Laying my head on the table, covering it in utter embarrassment.

“That didn’t go well, did it?” My sister said while casually scrolling through her phone. “And here you were boasting about how much of a smooth talker you were. You sir, just got rejected.”

“Will you shut up?” I groaned at her not raising my head. I’m already embarrassed out of my mind and she is not making it any better.

“Fine fine, you big baby I’ll go get our drinks and then you can go home and cry.” She said standing up as our orders were called.

‘God, why did I think it was a good idea to bring my sister along? How had it not crossed my mind? I hadn’t even given it a second thought as to what I was gonna do if I did get rejected. And to make matters much worse I just got rejected in front of my sister. I will never hear the end of it at family reunions. I’m already mentally digging my grave when I heard my sister come back.

“I think this one is yours” She said as she placed my drink in front of me. I raise my head slightly so I would be able to see what was in front of me. I looked at my cup as it said:

‘To the cute boy from apartment 512’

‘xxx-xxx-xxxx -Y/n’

—

A/N- So this is the first time I’ve ever wrote fan fiction before, I mainly stick to drawing so please excuse any mistakes I tried my best. But I hope you liked it over all. Also the lyrics in English don’t make as much sense as they do in Spanish, and it’s was bugging me so if they seem a bit odd you know why.

A special thanks to @tofuyami she really helped me with the brainstorming and editing process <3

@hungoverhellhound @cherrysirin @tofuyami @nealocus @struggling-with-time @bugsinmycoldsoup @venusacrossthestars @galaxygnf

Also stand Selena always -🍈

[fruitcoops]

Hi!! I was wondering if you could do another fic involving jules and coops together? Just like sweet moments between the three? I loved the baby sitting series you did and could not stop thinking about it❤️❤️ Thank you!!

Yeah, of course! I love writing my boy at any opportunity. SW credit goes to @lumosinlove, but the relatives are my ocs!

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Sirius asked under his breath as Remus finally—finally—appeared from the mass of people.

“It’s fine,” Remus said around a forced smile to a middle-aged man across the yard.

Sirius hid his mouth by pretending to look down at the nearest casserole dish. He didn’t even know what was in it; nobody had bothered with labels, and everyone’s dishes were the same basic florals in different colors. “I love you, Re, and I totally get the whole ‘meet the parents’ thing, but this is a bit much if I’m being honest.”

“Honey.” Remus’ shoulder pressed against his own. “I’m sorry you’re not having a good time, but my Aunt Jen would skin me alive if I didn’t bring the man I’m marrying to the family reunion. We can leave tomorrow if you really hate—oh, no.”

“Remus!” a shrill, excited voice called. Sirius felt his fiancé straighten up as a tall, redheaded woman in star-painted jeans hurried across the grass with three other women in tow. She reached up and gave Remus’ cheeks a squish, then leaned in a planted a lipstick-stamped kiss to his forehead. “How are you, my duckling? Was your flight alright? Make sure you stay away from the salt or else your feet will swell.”

“Hi, Aunt Jen,” Remus said, grimacing a little at her rib-crushing hug. “I’m doing well, and our flight was fine. How are you?”

“Peachy keen,” she assured him. Dark brown eyes lasered in on Sirius half a second later and he felt his fight or flight kick in. “And who are you?”

“Aunt Jen, this is—”

“It was rhetorical, honey,” Jen interrupted with a pat to Remus’ arm as she stepped closer to Sirius and immediately hauled him in for a hug. She was as tall as Remus, but broader in the shoulders and hips; he had never felt so engulfed by someone. It was a strangely enjoyable feeling.

“Aren’t you a handsome one?” the shortest of the group cooed, as if she was talking to a particularly small dog in a purse. “Our Remus always knew how to pick them.”

Remus furrowed his brows. “Aunt Lisa, this is the first boyfriend I’ve—”

“But he’s not just a boyfriend!” Jen trilled, giving Sirius’ cheek a pat. “He’s a fiancé, something I learned from your mother. Not from your father—oh, I gave him a talking-to about that—and not from you, duck.”

Sirius bit back a laugh at the nickname and spared a glance to his left, where Remus had gone pink all the way to his ears. “Sorry.”

“Introduce us!” the shortest insisted, taking the other two by the hands as pulling them forward with an eager smile.

“Everyone, this is Sirius Black, my fiancé.” Remus gestured between them, and the four women beamed at him. “Sirius, this is Aunt Jen, Aunt Lisa, Aunt Allison, and Aunt Mary, my dad’s sisters.”

“It’s lovely to meet you,” Sirius said, holding a hand out.

“No need to be so formal,” the brunette grumbled with a teasing grin. “We have heard so much about you from Lyall. After those damned pictures—”

“Allison,” Jen hissed.

“—after the damned pictures,” Allison repeated with a pointed look. “I was about ready to drive up to Gryffindor myself and give that lousy son of a bitch a piece of my mind—”

“Allison!”

“—but Lyall talked me down and I have been waiting to meet you ever since.” She finished with a soft huff and gave his arm a quick squeeze. “Remus is a lucky boy to have you. It’s very exciting to see you in person at last.”

Sirius’ heart gave a happy little ka-thump and he smiled. “I’m glad to be here. Thank you for having me.”

“He is so polite,” Lisa said to Remus out of the corner of her mouth with a wink and a thumbs-up. “Good choice.”

“You know what I just realized? We haven’t said hello to Jules yet. We’ll see you in a few, yeah?” Without waiting for an official answer, Remus wrapped an arm around Sirius’ waist and practically carried him away from the table. Once they were out of earshot—and the aunts had busied themselves with one of the younger Lupins—Remus relaxed with a slow exhale. “I am…so sorry.”

“For what?”

“I had no idea they were going to corner you like that. I mean, I did, but I was hoping it wouldn’t be for another few hours. They tend to move in a pack at reunions, like sharks. Or wolves.”

“They’re really sweet.”

“They are,” Remus said grudgingly, though Sirius could read the affection dripping off him like his favorite book. “My dad’s the youngest of five, and I was the first nephew. You can imagine how that went.”

“Baby of the baby?”

“Exactly.”

“Can I ask one thing?” Remus nodded, visibly confused, and Sirius found he couldn’t keep his grin down any longer. “Duckling?”

“I hoped you didn’t hear that,” he groaned as they headed toward the kids’ play area beneath a large oak. “Long story short, it involved five-year-old me, a pond, and a sinus infection that made me sound like a duck when I sneezed.”

“Oh my god,” Sirius laughed, earning himself a light elbow to the ribs. “And the name stuck?”

“Considering she was the one that had to stay with me while my folks were working, she could call me whatever the hell she wanted. Please don’t ask her about it unless you want a thirty-minute TED talk about the ins and outs of my sinuses.”

“She’s a doctor?”

“No, she just overshares.”

“Sirius!”

Sirius looked up and saw a herd of small children racing toward them, led by his favorite person under the age of eighteen; Jules crashed into his legs and squeezed him tight around the waist. “Hey, I missed you!”

Jules propped his chin below Sirius’ sternum and stared up at him with the classic hazel-gold eyes that were far more common than Sirius believed before they arrived in the Lupins’ backyard. “I missed you, too! How’s the team? How’s Harry? Is he still super small or did he do that weird thing that babies do where their legs grow and the rest of them still looks normal? How was your flight? Did you have turbulence?”

Sirius thought for a moment. “Good, also good, growing normally, and yes.”

“Sweet! Come play cornhole with us!” Jules grabbed his hand and dragged him along the grass at the closest thing he could manage to a sprint with Sirius’ added weight—the pre-teen years had lent him gangly legs, though he didn’t seem quite sure how to use them yet. He looked more like a foal than a sixth-grader.

“What the hell is cornhole?” Sirius muttered as the flock of kids ran ahead to grab armfuls of beanbags.

Remus grinned. “Something I’m about to kick your ass at.”

------------------------------------

By the time the sun set, Sirius was exhausted. He had been introduced to dozens of people who looked just enough like Remus to be eerie, as well as plenty who seemed to have been acquired by one Lupin or another over the course of their life. Jules fluctuated between laminating himself to Sirius’ side and disappearing for an hour at a time, only to return more grass-stained and rumpled than ever as he begged Remus to swing him around by the ankles again. His ass had been thoroughly kicked at cornhole and freeze tag; it was a true miracle he hadn’t already passed out into a food coma. For all of his earlier griping, Sirius couldn’t think of a time in recent months when he had been more content.

“You’re a brave soul,” Remus remarked as they sat in the grass together and watched the fireflies wake. Though it was a warm night, it seemed the citronella candles littering the tables were doing their job of chasing off mosquitoes.

Sirius leaned his head on Remus’ shoulder. He smelled like grass and summertime and sunbaked warmth. “Am I?”

“Mhmm. I’m sure most people would have run screaming by now.”

“I like your family.”

A beat of silence passed; Remus rested his temple against the top of Sirius’ head. “I’m really glad to hear that. They’re weird and loud, but I love them.”

“And I love you.”

“Are you saying I’m weird and loud?”

“On occasion.”

“Asshole,” Remus laughed, giving him a nudge that hardly qualified as more than a gentle sway.

“Language, there are eight million kids around.”

“They’re busy.”

Sirius watched as small group run by in a wave of giggles, all clutching mason jars of fireflies with their names written on masking tape. “Thank you again for asking me to come with you.”

“Like I said, Aunt Jen would—”

“Remus.” He fell quiet. Sirius didn’t remember the last time he said Remus’ full name aloud. “Your family loves you so much. They’re everything I ever wanted growing up, and it means the world that you wanted to share them with me. All they want is to see you happy. It was amazing to finally meet them.”

“They really, really love you,” Remus said softly, his voice a little thick. “I had about twenty people tell me how wonderful you are. They all thanked me for bringing you, and not a single one mentioned the celebrity thing. Even my Uncle Jay didn’t say a word about hockey.”

“He was the one in the jersey?”

“I’ve known him for my entire life and I’ve never seen him without one.”

“Huh.” Sirius tucked his face closer to Remus’ neck and let the sound of the bullfrogs in a distant marsh lull him. “What time is it?”

“Almost eleven. The adults will be up for a while, but the kids will start crashing soon.”

Footsteps on the cool grass rustled to their right and Sirius looked up. “Who wants pie?” Aunt Allison singsonged, breaking their quiet bubble with paper plates and utensils. “This one is blackberry, but we have peach, pumpkin, and a few others on the table if you’re still hungry.”

“Just a small piece, please,” Sirius said.

Allison paused and cocked her head, then burst out laughing. “Oh, you’re funny!”

“I am?”

“Don’t fight it,” Remus whispered.

“You are a growing boy,” Allison said as she cut a thick slice and plonked it onto his plate. “And there’s no such thing as too much pie.”

I’m 26, Sirius wanted to say, though he held it in. “Just a small one for me, as well,” Remus said.

“Ha!” Allison snorted. “You’re already too skinny. Eat your pie or you’ll end up a string bean like your father. The NHL might have given you muscle, but it’s useless if you don’t enjoy some of your favorite aunt’s—”

“—woah, hey now—”

“—pie once in a while.” Allison kissed the tops of their heads once both plates were secure and bowing in the middle. “I’m going to make sure the kids aren’t poking around in the river again. Sleep well, you two.”

Sirius stared down at his plate as she wandered away. “I’m honestly going to die if I eat this.”

“Yeah, please don’t make yourself sick on pie. You really don’t have to eat all of that. The aunts and uncles are convinced that none of us are eating properly once we turn eighteen.”

“Really?”

“I wish I was kidding. You’re going to sleep so well tonight, though.”

As if on cue, Sirius stifled a yawn with the back of his hand and cuddled under Remus’ arm again. A familiar shadow bounded over not two seconds later and he barely held down a groan. “Hey, can I join you?”

Remus shrugged. “ ‘course.”

“Sweet.” Jules settled himself across their laps, staring at the sky with his head pillowed on Sirius’ thigh. “Did you have fun? I’m really glad you could come.”

“I had a great time,” Sirius answered honestly. Now please move on so I can take a nap.

“Mom and dad and me got here yesterday, and Aunt Jen kept checking the door for you guys even though she knew you weren’t coming until today. She was worried you wouldn’t like us, I think.”

“That was never an option, Jules.”

“Yeah, I know.” A devilish grin flickered over his face. “Remus is the weirdest of all of us, and if you want to marry him—”

“Get off,” Remus grumbled, shoving Jules’ legs onto the picnic blanket. “You know, you were a lot nicer before you turned eleven. Can I return you and get a new one? I have the receipt somewhere.”

“Nope.”

“That’s all a birth certificate is, right?” Sirius raised his eyebrows. “If you bring it back in good condition, I hear they give you a ten percent discount.”

Jules scowled. “That’s so not true.”

“How do you think I got Regulus?”

“Isn’t it past your bedtime?” Remus asked with a pointed look. “Run along, problem child.”

“Of the two of us, I’m the least problematic.” Despite his words, Jules clambered to his feet and dusted his hands off over Remus’ head. “I’m not the one that got a secret boyfriend and got engaged in a year. I’m so easy. Mom and dad want two of me.”

“Keep telling yourself that,” Remus sighed as he stretched out on the blanket. “They had a second kid because they wanted two of me.”

“You’re adopted.”

Remus cracked one eye open in disbelief. “No, I’m not.”

“How do you know?”

“Because—y’know what, go to bed. Or go find the stampede, I think they’re by the river.”

Sirius whistled lowly as Jules scampered off again. “That was impressive. Isn’t your aunt over there?”

“Yep.”

Realization clicked into place. “She’s going to make him go to bed.”

“Yep.”

“You’re brilliant.”

Remus smiled without opening his eyes, and tugged Sirius down by the sleeve to lay next to him. “You’re just figuring that out now?”

The stars were brighter than anywhere Sirius had ever seen; for a moment, he was struck speechless by the endless rivers of sparkling white overhead. He stared until his eyes burned from dryness, then put his head on Remus’ chest and kept on looking. There was no way he could tear his gaze from it. A few shooting stars streaked across the clear sky and he felt his heart skip a beat in pure amazement when he realized there was nothing else he would wish for in that moment. He could listen to Remus’ heartbeat and the sound of his new family talking against a backdrop of the night, relishing in a full belly and cool wind, and simply stay there for as long as he liked.

[underworldreaderinserts]

Hey, this is my first time doing a request and I don’t know if this is the right place to put it (I hope it is). But I was wondering if you do do multiple characters, if you could do (separate) headcannons for Zagreus, Thanatos, and Hypnos falling for someone completely mortal on the surface? Thank you so much and I’m really sorry if I didn’t input my request correctly!

Hello, love! No, you did absolutely fine, this is exactly where you’re supposed to submit your requests♡ Thank you so much for sending it in! I hope it’s to your liking♡ I’m so sorry it took so long to publish. The past few days have been hectic! But I’m back♡ Do these even count as headcanons? I’m so sorry-- I know you asked for them separate, but I thought of them all together, and I accidentally made a poly circle. Since this post is long enough already, I’ll leave them out, but please let me know if you’d want me to make a post with them! I had so much fun imagining and writing it that I couldn’t help myself♡  -- Ryan

Thanatos:

✧ Your modest, mortal life hadn’t been too grandiose; you worked as a humble physician, tending to your village in ways of medication and treatment, everything between minor procedures and check ups.

     ✧ In your line of work, death was no stranger. It wasn’t very frequent that patients died in your care, but when they did -- whether it was a life lost to infection, injury, or illness -- they were only in extreme cases. (Needless to say, Thanatos had made all those visits to your practice)

✧ In the beginning, he'd refrained from any involvement in your life -- only watching over the soul whose allotted time was running out before reaping them, then departing. 

✧ But one day, he’d watched you fighting to keep your patient alive. Tears streaming down your face as you did everything in your power to stabilize the boy. His parchment read, ‘name; Nicos, age; 10, cause of death; injury by stampede’. 

     ✧ He knew that he’d have no other choice but to take the boy’s soul -- living with those irreversible damages would be a worse outcome.

✧ After that, he began to notice things he never did before. 

     ✧ The care you put in to making your patients comfortable before they passed. How you went above and beyond caring for them, and giving preventative measures to prolong their life (though he’d still be there to take the soul regardless, he’d watched as you did your best to preserve their life). All of it showed how limitless your strength was.

✧ “He’s.. doing fine. The boy.” You heard a voice one day, an unfamiliar one. You turn around from the bookshelf you stand before, holding a journal and a vial of ointment. 

     ✧ “Excuse me?” You blink, asking the stranger softly, taking in his features. He wasn’t from the village, you were aware of that. The village rarely had travelers passing through, and given this man’s robes and garments, you weren’t quite sure he was an ordinary man.

          ✧ “Nicos. He’s doing well.” The man wields his scythe, gently shifting its weight from one hand to the other. Your eyes widen as it dawns on you. “Than..atos?” Correctly identifying him, he seems to give a small bow of his head.

               ✧ You do as any sane person would, in the presence of a god; you drop everything in your hands and take a step back. You had enough reason to believe him -- after all, you knew everyone in this village, and Nicos had passed months before his arrival. There was no way he’d have known.

               ✧ “Are you... Is it my time?” You ask, leaving Thanatos a bit puzzled. “Are you here to collect my soul?” You repeat, and the understanding visually clicks in Thanatos, and he chuckles, shaking his head. Of course, you’d believe he’d come for your soul, as he’d only ever appeared before humans who have met their time. “Then... What is it you’ve come for?”

               ✧ You’d asked the million dollar question. Why had he even appeared before you? What was it that drew him out like this? “I... Can’t tell you myself. I just came to tell you, he’s doing well.” And with a toll of a bell, he’d disappeared. No word of goodbye, no mention of ever coming back.

               ✧ Reflecting on what had just happened; The God of Death himself had come into your home, just to tell you that Nicos was alright. It warmed your heart to take comfort in that, knowing that he was no longer in pain.

               ✧ Sitting on the situation a little longer, and judging by that little bit of information, it finally dawned on you that he was there, personally, for that event, and that he’d thought of you enough to reassure you.

✧ Due to his work, Thanatos makes frequent trips to the surface. 

✧ Frequent trips to the surface, meant frequent visits (where he could, of course. Lord Hades would have his head if he didn’t prioritize his job).

✧ At first, he refrained from any sort of involvement in your life -- he’d come for his job, and nothing more. But now he seeks you out. He’ll stop by to check in, or even just to see your face. And one thing differs now, when he comes to reap the soul’s whose allotted time had run out.

     ✧ “Take good care of them, Thanatos.” You’d smile softly as you place a coin over your patient’s mouth, voicing your little prayer to him. You said this each time, too, and it made him think you could see him.

✧ He wasn’t sure when it began, but thoughts of seeing you as he carried out his job filled him with a warm, soft feeling.

Hypnos:

✧ In charge of the census of the dead, Hypnos was aware of how everyone dies; when they died, and where they end up in the Underworld.

     ✧ He found that his job became so ingrained in his being that, when he’d drift off at work, his dreams would take him to visions of the lives of some of the mortals he had met, or have yet the pleasure of meeting when they come to the underworld.

          ✧ Most of these dreams always tie back to a particular individual -- someone who seems to touch the lives of everyone they’ve ever met.

✧ At first, he’d just assumed that you’d met and knew everyone in the world, as the only common denominator throughout these dreams was you. But upon further evaluation of that statement, he had determined that was impossible.

     ✧ Next, he had to admit that perhaps he was drawn to you. Whether it was a connection the Fates mandated, or it was his subconscious actively seeking you out, he’d have these visions of your life, these interactions with the people in your life.

          ✧ An image of your smile, the depiction of an experience you had. You’d invaded his dreams, and eventually his thoughts.

✧ Being shackled to the House, and without the luxury that Thanatos or Zagreus have to go to the surface, Hypnos only has a very one-sided means of interacting with you; and though he doesn’t know you, he’s very drawn to you.

✧ It’s curious. As he’s seen all these snippets of your life, he feels he simultaneously knows everything about you, yet nothing about you at all. He could see these candid shots of your life, but he doesn’t know your dreams, your ambitions, or even the sound of your voice.

✧ With his thoughts always falling back to you, he’s a bit more spacey on the job, receiving reprimands from Hades more and more often, looks judgement from his brother, and looks of solemn understanding from his mother.

✧ Achilles teases him, recognizing traits of “a lovesick puppy”, but never really gets an answer on what that means (he might even observe Cerberus for a while to see if he can understand it a little more).

✧ He awaits enthusiastically, and a tad bittersweetly, for your eventual arrival to the Underworld, desiring nothing more than to meet you, and to hear your experiences of life on the surface.

⚠️Spoilers Ahead!! ⚠️

Zagreus:

✧ Most of your mortal life is spent in Persephone’s vibrant and luscious gardens.

     ✧ You lived not too far from her cottage, and you made frequent visits to her, bringing her goods and gifts from the market, and the words from all the gossipers of the town.

          ✧ As far as you knew, she was the only one who lived here, and she didn’t seem to have any family of her own. Taking care of her gardens seemed to be her passion, and to be honest you enjoyed her company. There was something about her, so lively and inviting, that made it hard to stay away for long.

✧ Trips to Persephone were always fragrant, delicious, and warm, despite the permanent snow in the region. Conversations over meals, fishing by the river, and of course time spent in the garden where you got to watch your toils bear great produce.

✧ One day, you return to the cottage, a basket of bass and trout resting on your hip as you walk. The plan was to make a profit selling them in town, and use the coin to get better tools for the garden and the kitchen.

     ✧ Though, on the way to the cottage, you notice scorched earth in the shape of a bare footprints. The trail leads up to the garden, where you find Persephone with a man you’ve never seen before. A man like you’ve never seen before.

          ✧ You watch on as Persephone embraces this ethereal form, whose skin is much like ash and moonstone. He looked beyond out of place, yet, something about him felt so familiar.

               ✧ Focused on the two before you, carelessly unaware of your surroundings, you snap a branch under your foot, alerting them of your presence. The stranger flinched, tensing as he pulls his guard up. He turns to meet your eyes, and whatever words you’d formed in your mind vanished.

               ✧ One red, one green -- his eyes bore into yours as you admire his. That electrifying moment of attraction ends in time with Persephone clearing her throat.

               ✧ No one needed to say anything for you to recognize he’d had the same energy as Persephone. You could deduct immediately that he was her son. But nonetheless, Persephone’s words broke the silence, “[Y/N], This is... my son. This is Zagreus.”

               ✧ “Zagreus..” You sit a moment, tasting his name as it falls from your tongue, and it was something about the way you said his name that drew a shiver up his spine.

               ✧ “[Y/N]... Have you been here the whole time? How much did you hear? Do the Olympians know of you, too?” His questions went miles a minute, but made no sense to you. “Why would the Olympians...? What, do you mean the Gods?” You ask, and Zagreus exchanged a look to his mother, recognizing his own mistake.

               ✧ However, he’d reached his limit in that moment, and Zagreus clutched his chest, stumbling. Immediately, you drop your basket in worry, and go over to help him maintain his balance. Persephone placed her hand on your shoulder, and you watched as his body faded away.

✧ It was then, between that day and the next visit Zagreus paid to the garden, that the whole truth was told to you. How Persephone was actually the daughter of Demeter, the cause of the perpetual snow, and Zagreus was her son with the God of the Underworld, Hades.

✧ Since the day he’d met you in his mother’s garden, his curiosity was piqued. 

     ✧ How long had you been visiting his mother? If you hadn’t known she was a Goddess of Olympus, what was it that drove you to help her? His heart beat faster with his recount of your eyes, your voice, your worry as he felt the tug of the Styx back to the Underworld.

✧ His mission remained escaping to see his mother again, and again, but he found himself hoping each time that you were there.

     ✧ To try the food that you’d make for him. To hear the newest rumor that was spreading around the town. To help around the garden, and see you glow with happiness as each of the plants met maturity. 

✧ You’d invaded his mind, tugging at the strings of his heart -- and on the days when you were away from the garden, his mother had no problems teasing him about his crush on you. Though, she admits, if she’d have to give her only son away to anyone, it would absolutely be you.